The Sisters Grimm: Book 8 The Other Everafters
by wormybook
Summary: If Sabrina thought that things couldn't get any worse, she was wrong. With the world going insane around her, can she manage to save herself, her sister, and her friends?
1. Speechless

**A/N: I really love The Sisters Grimm, but I am unfortunately not Michael Buckley, so the only things in this story that are mine are the plot and some mystery characters who will appear later. This story may or may not in later chapters include PuckxSabrina.**

Book 8: The Other Everafters

Chapter One

Sabrina tried frantically to remember all she knew about the Land of Oz. As far as she knew, it was split into five different sections, each with its own ruler and favourite colour. The Munchkins, she remembered, preferred blue and were ruled by the Wicked Witch of the East. Of course, it would be easier to remember more of the story if there weren't five of them staring at her right now. Slowly, the one in front, who appeared to be the leader, knelt at her feet, followed by the other four. Without looking behind her, she could tell that Daphne was biting down hard on her hand.

"Greetings, great witch. The citizens of Munchkinland thank you deeply for freeing them from the bondage of the Wicked Witch of the East,"

"I'm not a witch!" said Sabrina, carefully following the story's script,

"You must be a very great witch, as only witches wear white, and you must be friendly because you are wearing blue too, which is the favourite colour of the Munchkins. Sabrina looked down at her dress and hair. The dress was blue gingham, and her blonde hair was tied up in two braids. At that moment she was irrationally glad that Puck couldn't see her, she looked about 6 years old!

"Who is the girl with you? Is she training to be witch too?" one of the Munchkins asked, only to be silenced by a glare from the leader,

"She's not a witch, she's my little sister," Sabrina tried to explain, but it seemed like the Munchkins had stopped listening to her to stare at something over her shoulder. She spun round to see what everyone was looking at. At first, she couldn't see anything but Daphne, until her sister grasped her sleeve, trying to get her attention.

Confused, Sabrina looked down at her sister to see what the matter was. Daphne's lips were moving, but no sound was coming out.

"Daphne! Daphne, what is it? I can't hear you!" Sabrina said, worried. The little girl's hands flew to her lips as her eyes widened. For the first time, Sabrina started to fear that there was more to getting out of this fairy tale than she had first thought…

**A/N: I'll probably be able to get the next chapter out soon. Reviews of all shapes, sizes and types help me write faster!**


	2. Dealing with Witches

**A/N: New, EXTREMELY long chapter, out VERY fast, thanks to Lara D for her lovely review. Do not expect another chapter out this fast ever again. I am not Michael Buckley, and therefore do not own any of the characters.**

Chapter Two

Sabrina stared with growing panic at her sister. The little girl was mouthing more words, looking more terrified by the second.

"Daphne, I can't hear you," Sabrina repeated, willing her voice not to tremble. Daphne was probably scared enough as it was, without seeing Sabrina freak out as well.

Daphne raised the hand that was holding Sabrina's sleeve, trying to show her sister what she was trying to say. Her hand was shaking badly, but not so much that Sabrina couldn't tell what she was trying to show her. A beautiful young woman in a bright, silvery bubble was floating down from the sky. She had long, scarlet hair and was wearing a snowy white gown, but although Sabrina felt that she had seen her before, she couldn't immediately remember where.

However, when the bubble touched the ground, and the woman stepped out, Sabrina recognised her face instantly. She suddenly felt cold, as though someone had poured ice down the back of her neck. The last time she had seen the woman, she had been wearing an emerald green tracksuit with a scarlet hand printed in the middle. The glare she had been wearing then was a huge contrast to the gentle smile that now graced her lips, and Sabrina had to admit that she must weigh a few stone less than the version back Ferryport Landing, but the two were, apart from those few exceptions, completely identical. There could be no doubt. It was Glinda, the Good Witch of the North.

Sabrina's first instinct was to slap the gently smiling face in front of her, but she quickly restrained herself, remembering that firstly, the witch was (for now) on her side, secondly, she could help sort whatever was wrong with Daphne, and thirdly, it wouldn't go with the story they were trapped in. She had to force herself to be polite to a woman who she knew would eventually betray her family.

"Can you help me? My sister and I need to get home to our grandmother," she asked, trying to look hopeless and pathetic. It wasn't that hard, after the shock of ending up in a beloved children's story, and then discovering that her sister had lost the ability to talk.

"I am sorry, little ones, but I do not have the power to send you home. There is a great desert between Oz, where you are now, and your world. There is only one person in Oz who can help you," Glinda replied in her singsong voice, which served to infuriate Sabrina even more. She took a deep breath, which she hoped could be mistaken for trying to hold back tears.

"Can you tell me who it is?" she asked, trying to sound afraid,

"The Great and Terrible Wizard, Oz. He lives in the Emerald City, about a week's journey from here. He is the only one who can return you to your home," Glinda replied. Sabrina flinched again. Oz, another member of the Scarlet Hand, one against whom she had a very deep grudge. He had abducted her parents, causing her and Daphne to be shuffled from foster home to foster home, each with crueller and more sadistic 'parents' than the last. He had stolen two years of Sabrina's childhood, forcing her to grow up fast in order to protect her sister. He had, in short, ruined her life, and he had escaped from her in a hot-air balloon just two months previously. _Calm down, Sabrina_, she told herself.

Getting angry wouldn't help them escape this story, and it definitely wouldn't help Daphne. Sabrina knew all too well the cost of not controlling her emotions. The year before, Rumpelstiltskin had used her anger to destroy Ferryport Landing Elementary. She had sworn then that she would never let her temper get the better of her again, but she seemed to be failing miserably, especially when a certain fairy was involved.

"How can we get to the Emerald City?" she asked, returning her mind to the conversation at hand,

"Nothing simpler, my dear, just follow the Yellow Brick Road," Glinda replied, sweetly, "And take the witch's slippers. They might help you." Then the silver bubble reappeared, and she floated up into the sky, vanishing as suddenly as she had appeared.

"Come on, Daphne," Sabrina said to her silent sister, after grabbign the slippers and handing them to her. She hadn't liked surrendering them, but she kner that magic wasn't good when combined with her, "we have to go find Oz,"

Daphne frowned, and mouthed something. Sabrina looked around for something, anything that would allow her sister to communicate. The dirt they were standing on was littered with twigs and sticks. Sabrina was hit with a flash of inspiration. Picking up one of the sticks, she handed it to Daphne, saying "Write it down. Write it in the dirt!"

A grin lit up the little girl's face as she took the stick from Sabrina. She quickly began scratching letters in the dust. When she had finished, she stood up, gesturing to the words she had marked in the dirt.

Written there were the words, _OZ WAS A BIG FRAUD!_

"I know, but we have to follow the story, at least until we find a portal," Sabrina explained. Daphne's mouth formed and 'o' of understanding, and she nodded vigorously. She took Sabrina's hand, and began to tug her towards the road.

"One second," Sabrina said, holding up a finger. She quickly tugged the hair bands out of her hair, running her fingers through it to make sure that no sign of the braids were left there. Daphne giggled silently, but Sabrina didn't care. She had a feeling they were going to meet Puck soon, and he would mock her to hell and back if he saw her with braids.

"Let's go," she said, rolling her eyes at her still laughing sister.

As they walked along the Yellow Brick Road (well, Sabrina was walking, the irrepressible Daphne was skipping and mouthing the words to 'Follow the Yellow Brick Road',) Sabrina began to wonder why she cared so much what Puck thought. It wasn't as if his opinion really mattered to her, did it?

Suddenly, Daphne yanked on her sleeve to get her attention. She was laughing soundlessly, but so hard that she was almost in tears. Gasping for breath, the girl pointed in the direction of a cornfield. On a tall pole in the middle of the field was a very disgruntled-looking Puck!


	3. Bickering, Bickering, And More Bickering

**Disclaimer: I am not Michael Buckley, nor will I ever be. Therefore, I obviously do not own The Sisters Grimm.**

Chapter Three

Sabrina laughed so hard she was gasping for breath. Of all the characters in The Wizard Of Oz, this was definitely the most hilarious Puck could have been cast as.

"Are you going to help me get down or not?" Puck yelled from his uncomfortable position above the field.

Sabrina helped Daphne over the high fence, before vaulting over herself. Picking her way through the corn, she looked up at Puck, "You have no idea how tempted I am to leave you up there," Sabrina grinned, mockingly,

"Sure, Grimm, we all know you wouldn't do that. Face it, you're crazy about me!" Puck replied. Daphne's jaw dropped. Puck had to choose the one thing that would annoy Sabrina the most. She covered her ears, not a moment too soon.

"WHAT! What is wrong with you, fairy-boy? You seriously need to work on your ego, I detest you! I can't believe that even you could come up with something so ridiculous!" Sabrina shrieked, punching Puck's stomach hard,

Daphne grabbed her arms, restraining her. Sabrina didn't try to shake her off, she didn't want to hurt her little sister, even if it meant giving up an easy opportunity to punch Puck again.

Daphne seemed to be tracing patterns on her sister's wrist. Sabrina realised that she was writing. When she concentrated, she could tell what she was writing easily. _CALM DOWN, SABRINA, _the girl was tracing, _WE MIGHT NEED HIM LATER_. Sabrina took a couple of deep breaths and began again.

"OK, you have two options: one, you can continue to irritate me and I'll leave you here, or two…" her eyes narrowed craftily, "you agree to my terms, and I help you get down."

"What are the terms?" Puck asked, warily. Sabrina told him, trying to control her laughter, "No way!"

"Yes, way, if you don't want to be stuck up there forever," Sabrina replied, grinning again,

"Fine, Grimm, just get me down already!" he decided. Sabrina grabbed the back of his sweater, stretching it up over the top of the pole.

Puck fell to the ground with a thud, causing the two girls to laugh even harder.

"Wait a sec, before I have to do your stupid forfeit, what's wrong with the marshmallow? She hasn't made a sound," he asked, frowning,

"She can't. I think the story's trying to make her fit. She's like a Toto substitute, only human, so it's evened out by her loss of voice," Sabrina tentatively explained the theory that had formed in her head.

"How can we make her talk again?" Puck asked, looking at Sabrina expectantly,

"Either getting out of the book or switching stories. Hey, you're just trying to distract me from making you do your forfeit! Come on, do it now!" The three of them were out of the field by now, and back on the road.

"Show some mercy, Grimm!" Puck pleaded,

"Did you show any mercy with the flying horses?" Sabrina asked,

"No, but that was different…" He froze, realising he had sealed his fate. Sabrina smirked, victoriously, "Fine, I'll sing the stupid song,"

Raising his voice, Puck began to sing The Scarecrow Song from The Wizard Of Oz.

"_I could while away the hours, conferring with the flowers  
Consulting with the rain.  
And my head I'd be scratching while my thoughts were busy hatching  
If I only had a brain.  
I'd unravel every riddle for any individual,  
In trouble or in pain.  
With the thoughts I'll be thinking I could be another Lincoln  
If I only had a brain.  
Oh, I could tell you why _

_The ocean's near the shore.  
I could think of things I never thought before.  
And then I'd sit, and think some more.  
I would not be just a nothing my head all full of stuffing  
My heart all full of pain.  
I would dance and be merry, life would be a ding-a-derry,  
If I only had a brain_," Puck finished, glaring at Sabrina, who was practically rolling on the floor in hysterics,

"God, that was priceless!" she laughed, "I wish I could have filmed that!"

Daphne nodded in agreement. It really had been hilarious.

"I will get you back for this, Grimm," Puck glared at Sabrina, who poked her tongue out at him.

"Sure you would, fairy-boy, if you only had a brain!" she snorted,

"Whatever, Grimm, let's move," he said, walking away from her,

"What's eating him?" Sabrina asked her sister. Daphne just rolled her eyes and shrugged, as if it were obvious. '_Why does everyone always do that when I ask what's up with Puck? _' she wondered, following her sister and the boy.

That day's walk was a long one. The sun was baking hot, and Sabrina felt as though she was going to roast in the heat. Added to the discomfort of the heat, the entire group was completely silent as they trudged along the glaringly bright path. Daphne couldn't talk, and Puck, for once, wouldn't. Sabrina had wished many times before that Puck would shut up, but right now the utter silence was, for some reason, depressing her.

Eventually, after two hours of doing nothing but walk, Daphne sat down on the grass at the roadside and refused to walk anymore. Sabrina rushed over to her.

"Daphne, are you OK?" she said, anxiously, kneeling beside the girl. Daphne rolled her eyes and pointed to her stomach, "What is it? Does anything hurt?"

"She's hungry, airhead," Puck announced, from behind her. Sabrina jumped about a mile, she hadn't expected him to speak again any time soon, "Come to think of it, so am I. Did you actually bother to pack any food?"

"Why me? In case you've forgotten, I was a little preoccupied earlier," Sabrina retorted, irritated,

"You're supposedly the mature one, doesn't that include packing food?" he argued,

"Oh, a four-syllable word, maybe you _are_ developing something inside your skull apart from the smell," she replied sarcastically.

Daphne realised that the pair of them would keep it up until nightfall if given the chance. Grabbing her sister's arm, she pointed at a house on the other side of the road.

"Smart idea, marshmallow," Puck acknowledged, beginning to make his way to the little house. Sabrina grabbed his wrist with her free hand, making him stop dead.

"What is it, Grimm? Or did you just feel the irresistible urge to hold my hand?" he asked, mockingly,

"The day I willingly hold your hand will be the day you swear to never pull another prank on me again," she snapped, "I was going to ask you what the two of you were thinking when planning to just knock on the door demanding dinner and a bed for the night. Are you utterly insane? The owners of that house could be psychopaths! They might think we're psychopaths! Who knows what they could do?"

"You're overreacting, Grimm. It's not like Oz is known for its dangerous murderers…"

"Oh, yeah? What about Glinda and the Wizard? In case your goldfish-sized memory has completely ceased to function, they've both attempted to kill us more than once," Sabrina interrupted,

Daphne suddenly knelt down on the house's dirt front path, and began scratching a message in the dirt. When she had finished, she gestured for Sabrina to read it. _THEY WON'T HURT US; THEY'LL THINK YOU'RE A WITCH._

"Fine!" Sabrina yelled, "We'll go and ask, but don't blame me if they turn out to be evil!"

The front door of the house opened. A little girl stepped out.

"Excuse me, but my mom wants to know if you want to spend the night with us or stay outside yelling until morning?"

Daphne smiled and followed the girl into the house. Puck followed her eagerly. He could already smell food. Sabrina sighed, but trailed after her sister and the fairy into the warmth of the cottage.


	4. The Egress

**A/N: Sabrina, Daphne and Puck are still not mine, they're Michael Buckley's, but Sky and Azura are. This chapter is out quickly, again thanks to Lara D and Schadenfreude62 for their lovely reviews.**

Chapter Four

The inside of the house was warm and bright, and Daphne, Puck and the little Munchkin girl were already seated at a blue table in the centre of the room. To one side, a young woman was stirring a pot on the stove. A delicious smell was coming from that pan, so Sabrina sat down at the table beside her sister, waiting for dinner to be served up.

The little girl was chattering rapidly, not letting anyone else get a word in edgeways. Sabrina's heart ached at that. It reminded her of Daphne's near-constant chatter at home.

By the time dinner was ready, Sabrina had found out that the girl's name was Sky, her mother was Azura, and her father was away working in the town. She was about to ask Sabrina a question when her mother strode over with the cooking pot in her hands.

"Sky, no more talking. You'll deafen our guests!" Azura exclaimed, with a nervous glance at Sabrina. Sabrina stared at her hands folded on the table top. She felt ashamed at the fact that this woman thought she was a dangerous, powerful witch, when really she was just an ordinary human girl.

Azura was now ladling food out of the pan onto the children's plates. As a large dollop of it hit Sabrina's plate, she felt her eyes sting. It looked like perfectly normal spaghetti and meatballs, but it was bright blue, reminding her of her grandmother. Granny Relda would have asked for the recipe immediately. Pushing her chair back, she headed for the door.

"I need some air," she whispered, stepping out onto the porch. It had gotten darker very quickly, and the moon was rising. She sat down on the steps leading down to the path, wrapping her hands around her knees.

Whenever, during the two years her parents had been missing, Sabrina had felt afraid, unhappy, or alone, she had looked up at the stars, comforting herself with the thought that, no matter how far way her parents were, they were under the same sky. That thought brought no comfort to her now. The familiar constellations of Earth were nowhere to be found in the unfamiliar skies of Oz. She suddenly realised exactly how far from home she was. Resting her head on her arms, she started to cry as though her heart was breaking.

Sabrina had, in the past two years, forced herself to be strong, no matter what. Through even the most painful events, such as the death of Briar Rose or the betrayal of her friend and confidant, Mirror, she hadn't shed a tear, trying to be brave for the rest of her family. Now, however, there was nobody to see her weep, and she sobbed even after there were no tears left to cry.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps on the porch. She hoped it wasn't Daphne, she didn't want her little sister to see her lose it.

A voice from behind her said, "Grimm, you've been out here hours, what's – You're crying?"

Instantly she realised it was Puck. She didn't want to have to deal with his constant teasing at the minute.

"I'm not crying, I'm fine. Leave me alone," Sabrina sniffed, hiding her face with her blonde hair.

The step creaked as he sat down beside her, "Come on, Grimm, what's happened? You've never been the weepy kind. What's happened?"

"Nothing's the matter, I'm not crying," she replied, turning her head away from him.

Puck still didn't leave. Instead, he swept the golden waves away from her face, and in a strangely gentle action, brushed his fingers against her cheek. They came away wet with tears.

"What's the matter, Sabrina?" he asked her, kindly. Sabrina realised that he had hardly ever called her by her first name before. That was distraction enough for her to let the feelings that she had been trying to suppress spill out, "I'm so scared. Nobody at home knows who the Master really is, he could have killed my entire family! I don't know what they're doing or even if they're alive or dead. I don't know how long we've been gone. My sister's mute, and it's my fault for making her come into this stupid story. She's suffering, and I can't do anything about it. I'm supposed to look after her, but everything I do seems to hurt someone I care about!"

"Grimm, you know that's not true. You couldn't exactly leave her with the Master, and she would have hated you if you had. You did what you thought was right, it isn't your fault if it turned out badly. You can't blame yourself for everything that goes wrong," Puck told her.

Sabrina sat up, wiping her eyes, "Since when were you that mature and sensible?" she grumbled,

"It's over now," he grinned, poking his tongue out at her. In contrast to his words, he took her hand to help her up. When she had got to her feet, however, he dropped it like he'd just realised it was a bar of soap, "Come on, Grimm. Aren't you tired?" He led the way back into the house, "Your room's up those stairs on the right."

Sabrina collapsed into bed beside her snoring sister. She was exhausted from crying, but she couldn't seem to sleep. Puck's strange behaviour was replayed in her head whenever she shut her eyes. She had no idea why he'd shown her such understanding. He normally poked fun at her at every opportunity, so why was he being so kind when she was at her most vulnerable? She was still going over it mentally when she dropped off to sleep.

She was woken by someone poking her repeatedly in the ribs. She groaned, but sat up in bed. It was Daphne. She had a notebook and pencil in her hands, and was pointing to the sentence at the top of the page. '_I KNOW HOW TO GET INTO ANOTHER STORY!_' it read. Sabrina was instantly wide awake. Putting one finger to her lips, she slipped out of bed and crept out on the landing, beckoning for her sister to follow her. There were three other doors out there. Carefully pushing the nearest one open, she discovered a bathroom. She could see out of it's window it was still dark outside, so Sky and her mother were probably still asleep. Good.

The next door she opened led into a bedroom. In the bed, Azura was curled around her little daughter. Sabrina quietly shut the door again. Her eyes stung for a moment. The mother and daughter asleep reminded her of when she and Daphne had first discovered that their parents were missing. They had spent that night curled up in their parents' bed, as a thunderstorm raged overhead.

The third and final door led to the room she had been looking for. Puck was curled up on the bed, his thumb in his mouth. Sabrina covered her mouth to smother her laughter. No matter how oddly he had acted yesterday, he was still the boy who had played a million mean-spirited pranks on her, and she relished the opportunity to make fun of him.

"Rise and shine, precious," she whispered in his ear, Daphne in silent hysterics beside her, "Wakey, wakey!"

She regretted that the next moment, because he sat bolt upright and punched her in the nose. It took all her strength not to yelp loudly. Her hands flew to her nose, and she glared at him.

"What did you wake me up for?" he grumbled,

"Daphne says she's worked out how we could get into a new story without going all the way to the end of this one. Would you rather be stuck here until we complete the story?" Sabrina hissed, impatiently. She wanted out of this story _fast_.

"Fine, Grimm, I'm getting up!" he moaned, rolling out of bed, "By the way did you sleep in your clothes or something?"

Sabrina looked down at herself. The blue gingham dress that had so irritated her was creased from her sleeping in it, and her hair was tousled and knotted. She suddenly felt incredibly embarrassed about her appearance, "I'd like to see you look like a supermodel when you have only have one outfit and no hairbrush," she protested. Daphne rolled her eyes, before beginning to scribble in her notebook. She handed it to Sabrina, who read it aloud, "Daphne says 'Stop acting like jerkazoids or I won't show you what I found.' Let's go already,"

Daphne led the way down the staircase into the room they had eaten in the night before. From there, she opened a door on the far side of the chamber. It led into a surprisingly big room which contained some comfortable looking chairs, and an immense number of bookcases, all of which seemed to contain fairytales.

"How did you find this place?" she asked her little sister in amazement. Daphne wrote in her notebook for a while, before handing it to Sabrina, "She says 'I was bored while you were outside, so I came in here and opened a book. Something went weird – like the world twisted, and then I was in another library, in front of the Oz books. I think it was one out of Beauty and the Beast, because that was the book I opened. I took out The Wizard Of Oz, the world did the weird twisty thing again, and I was back here.' "

"Whoever wrote the Book of Everafter must have been nuts! Who'd put a bunch of portals in a _library_? It's not like anyone would ever want to go into one!" Puck whined, looking bored. The faerie claimed he was allergic to both books and hard work, though Sabrina often wondered if the boils that he developed when exposed to either were only a result of his shape-shifting abilities in order to get out of working or having everyone realise he couldn't actually read.

Sabrina ran her fingers along the spines of the books, reading the titles. Beauty and the Beast, Puss in Boots, Sleeping Beauty, The Egress… she suddenly backtracked. The Egress? That wasn't the title of any fairytale she knew. She scrolled through her mental dictionary she had built up over the two years her parents had been missing for, during which she had given Daphne the answers to all her questions. Then it hit her. An egress was an exit, a way out! Was this a back way out of the Book of Everafter? There was only one way to find out.

"Puck, Daphne, I've found an interesting one!" she called to her sister and the boy,

"It better not have any kissing in it, Grimm," Puck warned her, coming over,

"Do you really think I'd choose any story that I'd have to come within three feet of your stink in? I think it's the way back into the normal world!"

"Only one way to find out, Grimm," Puck said, placing a hand on her shoulder, "open it up."

Grabbing her sister's hand with her free one, Sabrina began to count down, "Three, two, one." She flipped the book open.

It felt like the entire universe warped, then began to twist around her. The only things Sabrina could be sure of were the feeling of Puck's hand on her shoulder, and Daphne's in her own. She felt dizzy, nauseous, and she realised she was about to faint. '_Why does this always happen to me?'_ she wondered as the swirling colours and shapes faded to black…


	5. Perfect Stranger

**A/N: CHAPTER FOUR HAS BEEN EDITED! PLEASE GO BACK AND READ IT BEFORE YOU START THIS ONE! Thanks to Ayns and Sky, Scheudenfreude62 and grimm and cullen for their gorgeous reviews. The more reviews I get, the faster I type, so keep them coming in! I still sadly do not own the Sisters Grimm.**

Chapter Five

Sabrina awoke feeling very uncomfortable. Her back was aching because she had been lying on a cold stone floor. She sat up, feeling disorientated. '_Where am I?_' she wondered, looking around. The answer came to her quickly: she was back inside the magic mirror, inside the Room of Shards.

"Starfish, you're awake!" exclaimed a cheerful voice behind her. Sabrina leapt to her feet.

"Keep away from me, you traitor!" she yelled, backing away from the figure advancing towards her,

"Oh, Sabrina, I'm not going to hurt you!" he said, as if trying to soothe her,

"You're the Master, you want to kill my entire family, of course you want to hurt me!" Sabrina shouted, staring around for some way of escape,

"Sabrina, you're being ridiculous. If I had been going to kill you, I would have done it by now," he replied calmly, "I'm not going to hurt you at all. I'm going to help you survive the revolution!"

"What?" She froze, frowning.

"Yes, you heard me right. You see, I've made a discovery. Even if I took possession of your brother's body, this mirror would still need a guardian…" he began to explain, but Sabrina cut him off,

"You want to make me into it? Why not choose one of your Scarlet Hand friends to take your place? They all seem to go on about dying for their cause, maybe they'd consider this as a less extreme option," Sabrina asked, angrily,

"That was what I first thought of doing, but then I suddenly realised something. You see, Sabrina, you seem to have a strange sort of protective spell on you, though I have no idea who cast it. When you, your sister and Puck turned up again, I was going to hand you over to Nottingham to dispose of, but before I called him, I looked at you. It was only once, but the spell opened a door, almost, in my memories. It reminded me of my child. I never told you about them, did I? I never saw them, but for a second, I saw them as a daughter, around your age. Ridiculous, I know, but in that moment, I knew that if I let them kill you, I would feel as though I had allowed them to murder my own daughter. So I came up with a way to let you survive the revolution. As the guardian of a magic mirror, you would no longer have any family, and therefore no longer be a Grimm, and so not interfere with the barrier. I've even found a spell to turn you into the guardian. It will be quick and relatively painless if you don't struggle," Mirror took a step closer to her, but she stumbled backwards again, her back hitting a wall.

"And if I do struggle? Ms. White and Puck have both taught me some pretty useful moves, I'll probably have a fighting chance at escape," Sabrina stated, trying to sound confident. Suddenly, she realised something was missing. Where were Daphne and Puck?

"You aren't going to struggle at all. Your sister and Puck are currently in the Scarlet Hand Headquarters, and are at the moment undergoing an operation to make them more… agreeable to us. If your sister leaves the barrier, she will be safe, and survive the war, but at the slightest sign of resistance from you, they will die, while you watch. Do you understand?" he asked her coldly.

Sabrina nodded, her eyes full of tears. She had fought hard, thrown everything she had into battling the people who had kidnapped her parents, and for what? For nothing now. Closing her eyelids, she sagged against the wall, waiting for him to grab her.

It never happened. She opened her eyes to see one of the most fantastic sights she had seen in her twelve years. Behind the Master, a strange portal had appeared. Almost dreamily, she realised that she had seen something like it before, when she had opened up a similar gateway to find her parents using the Little Match Girl's Matches. '_How can it be another portal like that one? I thought I'd used the last match,_' she wondered, vaguely.

Suddenly, the short, plump man in front of her crumpled to the ground, revealing a taller, slimmer figure standing behind him. Though she could only see a silhouette in the light coming from the portal, she could tell it was female, and had long hair.

"Sabrina, are you alright?" an unfamiliar girl's voice asked her, as a hand took her wrist to help her to her feet. The voice was gentle, and contained a strong English accent.

"He didn't touch me," Sabrina murmured, bewildered. The girl had already turned away from her to grab the little boy from the cradle in the corner, "who are you?"

"There's no time now, Sabrina, just trust me," the young woman pleaded, shifting the sleepy toddler onto one hip and reaching out to Sabrina with her free hand.

Sabrina wanted to scream '_No!_'' and swat the girl's hand away. She had trusted too many people blindly over the past two years. Jack, Bella, Rumpelstiltskin, Oz, Mirror, not even mentioning all the psychopathic foster parents she had stayed with. Another betrayal even half the magnitude of these would, she felt sure, break her. Through all the unhappy thoughts, however, a single voice in her mind spoke through: '_Sabrina, you can't live your entire life not trusting anyone._'

She grasped the strange girl's hand in her own, and together, they stepped through the portal…


	6. Answers

**A/N: Thanks to Lara D, Schadenfreude62, Grimm Diva, grimm and cullen, and Ayns and Sky for another gorgeous review, helping me get this chapter out faster than it would have been. I do not own The Sisters Grimm.**

Chapter Six

The portal closed up behind them, and Sabrina turned to stare at the slim girl who had rescued her. She had long, chocolate-coloured hair that fell in waves around her shoulders, blue-violet eyes framed with thick, black lashes, and a small, kitten-like nose dusted with freckles. She could only have been slightly older than Sabrina. She didn't look much like an Everafter, but if Sabrina had learnt one thing during her time in Ferryport Landing it was not to judge by appearances.

"Who are you?" Sabrina asked, quietly.

The girl smiled, "My name is Charlotte Perrault," she replied. Her name sounded strangely familiar to Sabrina. Where had she heard that name before?

"How did you know my name?" was Sabrina's next query,

"I know you have a lot of questions, Sabrina, but they'll have to wait until we can find everyone else," Charlotte replied, looking apologetic, "I can't really give you all the answers right now…"

That was when Sabrina hit the roof, "I'm sick of everyone keeping secrets from me! Why does nobody ever seem to think it necessary that _I _know the truth? And I'm not talking about bits and pieces here, I want to know everything. I don't care what you have to do, but I'm done with laters and maybes. I can't stand another second of lies and secrets!" she ranted, an angry tirade, not just at the girl in front of her, but at her parents, her grandmother, Mirror, all the people who had kept secrets from her and lied to her, and yet expected her unwavering trust.

Instead of yelling back, however, Charlotte put a gentle hand on her forearm, "I know," was all she said, but her strange indigo eyes showed a greater understanding of Sabrina's predicament than she had ever expected to find anywhere. This peculiar empathy wasn't like anything Sabrina had ever encountered before. Every other person she had encountered in her adventures had scarcely ever simply understood when she was angry or upset… _Almost _every person, that is. Tears filled her eyes as she realised that the one person who had always been there when she felt hurt was probably dead by now.

The dark-haired girl led her down a long, dimly-lit corridor, past several closed doors. Eventually, the corridor widened out into a large, bright room. It had wide windows, letting in dazzling sunlight. It was furnished like a combination of a library and a living room, scattered with comfortable chairs and sofas, computer desks and tables, and huge shelves and piles of books. Over the ornate fireplace was hanging a huge mirror.

Charlotte collapsed onto a sofa, settling the little boy on her lap. She patted the seat beside her. Sabrina sat down next to her, gazing around. The room was full almost to its bursting point with Everafters of all shapes and sizes. Some were sitting on the carpet; others perched on tables or curled on chairs. All of them were staring at her. Sabrina suddenly felt shy, veiling her face with her hair.

"OK, where to start?" Charlotte wondered aloud,

"The beginning?" Sabrina suggested,

"This whole thing started two years ago. I was your age, and I lived in London, in what was possibly the most dangerous house in the universe, though I had no idea at the time. One day, I came home from school to find the entire house covered in red handprints. I can remember the exact shape of the handprints even now. When I got inside, it was worse. The walls were covered in blood. When I reached the living room, I found my parents lying on the floor, my father dead, my mother dying," The baby on her lap whimpered, as though he could understand her words, but Charlotte's face was as blank as if she were only telling a story,

"She was only just conscious, but she told me to call her best friend, Rhiannon, instead of an ambulance. I did as she said, even though I thought she was raving. Rhiannon lived in Wales, she couldn't get to London soon enough. I was completely wrong. Almost as soon as I had put the phone down, she was there on the doorstep. She only looked at my parents once and shook her head. Then she told me to pack up my clothes and everything important to me. Once we were out, she opened a box and sprinkled some powder on the front path. The whole house burst into flames. There's still nothing there," she said all this perfectly calmly, but when she reached the last sentence, she closed her eyes, turning her face away. She didn't make a sound, but Sabrina caught a glimpse of a glittering tear on her cheek.

A young woman glided over and placed a gentle hand on Charlotte's shoulder. She had waist-length russet hair tied back in a thick plait, and hazel eyes that gazed at her gently. Sabrina had seen that look in her mother's eyes, as well as her grandmother's. It was the eternally-loving look of a mother. These hazel eyes looked as if they had seen millenniums pass, but the gentle love in them had never changed. Charlotte had buried her face in the toddler's flame-coloured hair, sniffing hard.

"I will continue the story from here," the young woman said in her lilting Welsh accent, her almost golden eyes looking into Sabrina's soul, "I took Charlotte to my home in Wales. We only stayed there a little while, as I knew The Scarlet Hand would be searching for her. I knew they wouldn't dare harm her when she was with me, but I couldn't be with her every moment of the day. So I brought her here, to Cornwall. I found a small castle, this castle, and bought and bespelled it so that nobody who didn't need to find it to hide from The Scarlet Hand could was able. Eventually, a bunch of other refugees from The Scarlet Hand heard about this place. Groups of them turned up on the doorstep, and we took all of them in, along with all their magical items. More of them live down by the seashore and out in the forest. You could say we're the biggest threat to The Scarlet Hand since Fort Charming fell."

"How long has Fort Charming been gone?" Sabrina croaked out, praying that no more of that small army had been killed.

"About two weeks. There have been deaths, but your family is still alive and well," Rhiannon told her, compassionately,

"How do you know?" Sabrina asked, terrified still that her entire family was dead,

"We have our sources," Rhiannon replied mysteriously, "Are you feeling better, Charlotte?"

"Yes, thanks," the girl replied, "I'll tell the next part of this story. One evening last year, the Andersen triplets turned up on our doorstep along with your uncle, to bring us some more magical items. Your uncle said that he was planning to return to Ferryport Landing soon, but wanted us to keep an eye on his family until then. I agreed, but I carried on keeping an eye on you even after he arrived. I had to. You managed to get in enough trouble even without your uncle's help. I gave William Charming one of the Little Match Girl's matches, knowing he would almost certainly give it to you in exchange for help solving the case at the school. We have the rest here, thanks to Sara," - she nodded a girl who looked about 10 years old and had a cloud of fluffy brown curls, "who discovered them."

"Where are my family now?" Sabrina enquired, her thoughts still on her parents, grandmother, uncle and sister... and Puck. '_Why am I so worried about Puck anyway? I don't even like him,_' she thought,

"Your parents, your grandmother, and your uncle are staying at your grandmother's, which is beginning to look like a fort. It's been rebuilt by those guys who I think are two of the Three Little Pigs. Morgan le Fay has been casting protective spells for all she's worth, it's all but impenetrable. Your family will be safe there," Charlotte replied, comfortingly,

"What about Daphne and Puck?" she asked, a chill creeping down her spine,

Charlotte's indigo eyes locked with Sabrina's green ones, "We don't know," Sabrina's eyes filled with tears. They didn't know? Puck and Daphne could be dead by now, "but Sabrina, I don't think they're dead. Someone who knows the Master better than anyone else thinks he won't kill them until he can make you watch. He likes to watch people as their hearts break, like with your uncle and poor Briar Rose."

"_You_ don't know, Charlotte," corrected a voice from behind them, "We, however, have found something you might find interesting,"

The girls spun round to see two people standing behind them, a man and a woman. They were polar opposites. The woman was no taller than Charlotte. Her black hair was cropped short in an inky cap, and her pink cheeks were dusted with freckles. Though she was small, she looked utterly fearless. In her hands was a silver laptop. The man beside her was probably more handsome than even Charming. His golden hair was slightly shaggy, and his skin was tanned bronze. He looked at the woman as though she was the sun in midsummer.

"Katie, John, don't do that to me!" Charlotte gasped,

"What? Don't you want to hear my news?" the woman, Katie, asked innocently in a strong Scottish accent,

"Fine, Kate, spit it out already!" Charlotte turned to Sabrina, "This is Katie Crackernuts and her husband, John. Katie has been trying to hack the Scarlet Hand's system for weeks."

"Are you Everafters?" Sabrina asked curiously,

Katie rolled her eyes, "You've never heard our fairytale? Honestly, I know it's not one of the famous ones, but I would have thought you, as a fairytale detective, would have read it at least."

"Hey, my dad kept me away from fairytales when I was a kid!" Sabrina said, defensively,

"Basically, I was dying of something nobody could diagnose. Katie turned up on our doorstep, with her cursed stepsister Anne in tow. Anne was cursed by Kate's mother, her stepmother, to have a sheep's head instead of her own, and Kate was looking for a cure. My brother paid Kate to nurse me. She worked out that I was sick because a certain fairy princess, who I think you've met, enchanted me to dance all night with her instead of sleeping. To cut a long story short, Katie found a way to break the spells on her stepsister and I. I fell for Kate, and we got married, while my brother married Anne," John explained, taking Katie's hand.

"Where are Anne and your brother now?" asked an intrigued Sabrina.

Kate scowled angrily, "That's why we're here. The Scarlet Hand murdered Anne, her husband, and their three children just because Anne's husband wouldn't let them set up a base near their home. My nieces were only 8, my nephew was 6," She shook herself, "Enough of this. Do you want to see what I've found?"

"Show me," Sabrina demanded. Kate placed the laptop she had been holding on her lap. The webpage that was open on the screen frozen Sabrina's blood in her veins to solid ice. It was a table showing the members of the Scarlet Hand. The top two lines contained the entries that had stunned her

Name Motive Loyalty Joined

Daphne Grimm Glass Unquestionable 17/03/2009

Puck, King of Faerie Glass Unquestionable 17/03/2009

The harsh, black letters blurred in Sabrina's vision, blotting out the rest of the world. Sabrina heard someone calling her name, as if from far away, but it was drowned out by the ringing in her ears. She felt the world whirl around her, and she collapsed to the ground, welcoming the darkness that allowed her to forget the bitter truth…

**A/N: Cookies to those who can guess who Rhiannon is! Remember, reviews of all shapes, sizes and species are welcome!**


	7. Waking Up

**A/N: Another quickly-written chapter thanks to ttoes555, Schadenfreude62, and obsessedwithbooks for more gorgeous reviews. A little clue as to who Rhiannon is: Mabinogion. It may look like a made-up word, but it will help either Celtic mythology fans or Google work out who she is and her story. Anyone who can guess now still gets cookies!**

**Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own The Sisters Grimm.**

Chapter Seven

"Sabrina? Sabrina, wake up!" A voice was calling her name, a girl's voice. Sabrina didn't want to wake up. She just wanted to stay in the warm darkness forever. Not to wake up, not to remember…

"Sabrina, I know you're faking now. Open your eyes," the girl commanded.

Sabrina's eyelids felt as though they had been coated in glue as she pried them apart, "What is it?" she grumbled,

"Sabrina, you fainted!" Charlotte was curled by her feet on the couch she was lying on, staring at her with wide sapphire eyes, "Do you feel OK?"

Suddenly Sabrina's memories rolled over her in a wave of pain and betrayal. Why? Why had the baby sister she had always adored and protected joined that group of murderers? Why had Puck, the boy she… Sabrina cut off that train of thought as soon as it entered her head, but inside she felt as though something irreplaceable inside her had snapped, leaving her broken. She couldn't even cry.

"Sabrina?" Charlotte's words seemed to be coming from the top of a deep well, "Sabrina, you can't give up!"

"Why not?" her voice sounded dead, "What is there to fight for?"

"Look at me, Sabrina Grimm," Charlotte's previously gentle voice was now firm. It felt almost as though lifting her head was too much of an effort, but she looked the older girl in the eye, "The Master takes what's most important to you, what he thinks would break your heart. Do you want to give him the satisfaction of knowing he broke you?"

"Does it matter?" Sabrina said, dully. That was when Charlotte slapped her, "Ouch, what was that for?"

"Thank God! Sabrina, I thought we'd lost you!" Charlotte sighed with relief, "You were acting like a zombie!"

"Can you blame me? I'd just discovered that my younger sister and Puck had joined The Scarlet Hand!" Sabrina replied, defensively, rubbing her stinging cheek,

"And? You didn't look at the most interesting part of the page!" Charlotte exclaimed,

"What was it?" Sabrina asked, intrigued,

"The motive! The reason they joined The Scarlet Hand in the first place!" Charlotte explained, "Since when was glass a reason, however dumb, to join a group of psychotic murderers?"

Sabrina's jaw dropped, "What do you think it means?"

"I'm not sure right now. We need to do some research," she replied, "Just grab a book."

"What should we be looking for?" Sabrina asked,

"Anything to do with enchanted or cursed glass; things that make people act oddly," Charlotte answered, picking up a book and beginning to leaf through it. Sabrina did the same, deciding on a copy of The Twelve Wild Swans. When Sabrina looked up, Charlotte was already picking up a second book. Her blue eyes began to blur as she read. '_Creepy_,' Sabrina thought, turning back to her own book which she was barely halfway through.

She had no idea what time it was, or how many hours had past since she had woken up. At one point, Rhiannon brought in a plate of ham sandwiches, which the girls ate while trying not to get crumbs on the books. The pile of books next to Charlotte grew quickly, while Sabrina's stayed relatively small. The only sound in the library was the turning of pages, or the all-too-infrequent sound of a pencil scratching on paper when one of them discovered something useful.

Eventually, Rhiannon poked her head into the room, "Last book, girls, then you have to go to bed. Sabrina, Charlotte will lend you some pyjamas,"

"Can't we stay up a bit longer?" Charlotte pleaded,

"It's almost 10 o'clock! You'll be exhausted in the morning!" Rhiannon scolded the girls,

"Fine, last book," the girls agreed, rolling their eyes,

"Good," Rhiannon smiled, leaving them to their reading. With a sigh, Sabrina grabbed her last book off a shelf nearby. It was The Snow Queen, by Hans Christian Andersen. She flipped it open to the first chapter, and gasped.

"Charlotte, come look at this!" she exclaimed, her voice showing the excitement she felt at her discovery. Charlotte peered over her shoulder.

"Sabrina, you're a genius!" Charlotte cried, beaming at the other girl. The page title read 'The Goblin's Mirror'. It was a magical mirror that made every good thing in the world seem hideous. It had been broken when the goblins tried to carry it up into the sky to mock the angels, but had dropped it. The shards could get into people's eyes and hearts, making them loathe the things they held most dear.

"Do you think shards of glass from this mirror could have made Puck and Daphne join The Scarlet Hand?" Sabrina asked the other girl,

"It looks like it. We'll do more research tomorrow," she replied, getting to her feet, "Come on, I'll show you where we're sleeping. You don't mind sharing a room with me, do you?"

Sabrina shrugged, "I don't mind," she replied, following the brown-haired girl along the dark corridor and up two flights of stairs. The door at the top of the second flight was painted dark blue. The room it led into was also painted dark blue, with silver stars spangling the ceiling. It was round, and one wall had a wide window with a comfortable seat set into it. The matching blue curtains were closed, so that Sabrina couldn't see the view. There was a mattress set up on the floor next to a comfortable-looking bed.

"You take the bed, I'll take the floor," Charlotte decided, pulling two pairs of pyjamas out of a drawer. She handed Sabrina a long, dark green T-shirt and some matching trousers, "The bathroom's the first door at the bottom of the stairs."

When Sabrina and Charlotte had changed into their night clothes, they slid into their beds. Charlotte seemed to drop off immediately, but Sabrina lay in bed, staring at stars over her head. She missed the sound of her little sister's snoring, and the warmth that radiated from the girl's body. Sighing, she rolled over onto her side and shut her eyes, but it was no use. She lay in the dark with her eyes shut, waiting for sleep to come her.

Suddenly, she heard a creak. She opened one eye a crack, and saw Charlotte tiptoeing out of the room. What was she doing, sneaking around at night? Carefully, Sabrina slipped out of bed, following the older girl down the staircase. She placed her feet on the side of the steps that were closest to the wall, knowing that they would creak less there. In the corridor, she accidentally stepped on a loose floorboard. Charlotte spun around, but Sabrina had pressed herself back into a doorway. Luck was with her. Charlotte didn't notice her in the dim light. She turned away, entering the darkened library. Sabrina stood in the shadowy archway, thankful that her borrowed pyjamas were so dark. She silently watched Charlotte clamber clumsily onto the mantelpiece, before standing up carefully. Then Charlotte did something which most people would have thought impossible – she stepped through the mirror. Sabrina gasped, '_They have a magic mirror? _' she realised, astounded…


	8. A Mirror's Tale

**A/N: Apologies for the disgustingly long author note. I'm finally on my summer holidays! That means more chapters! Reviews of all shapes and sizes are welcome, including critical ones, provided they explain exactly what's wrong with my writing. For those still stuck on Rhiannon, here's another clue: she has power over horses and some very special birds…**

**To obsessedwithbooks, I am glad that you've read some of the same stories as me, and that's where I got the idea from, but I'm using it in a different way.**

**To ttoes555, you got the main reason I chose Charlotte, and you're almost but not quite there with Branwen. Take another look at the Mabinogion. **

**To Ayns and Sky, there are way too many fairytales I love that aren't included in the books for this to really be a continuation of the series, and if you think you've worked out who some of the characters are, email me with your ideas.**

**Thanks to Schadenfreude62 and Lara D for more good reviews.**

**Disclaimer: My name is not Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Eight

Sabrina climbed up onto the mantelpiece, with slightly more grace and much less noise than Charlotte had. She stepped through the portal of the mirror to see a round, beautiful hall that looked as though it was made entirely of white marble. There were doors of different woods in the walls, and each door had a little silver plaque with the name of a fairytale on. Charlotte was talking to someone on the far side of the room, but she spun around at the sound of Sabrina's footsteps ringing on the marble tiles.

"Sabrina! What are you doing here?" she cried, running over,

"I followed you," Sabrina replied, "Why didn't you tell me you had a magic mirror?"

"She thought it would upset you," a melodious voice replied, and Sabrina turned to see a girl walking gracefully towards them. Sabrina frowned. She thought Charlotte had been talking to the guardian, but this girl looked nothing like all the other magic mirror guardians she had ever seen. For starters, mirror guardians were normally adult males, while this was a slim, golden-skinned teenage girl, wearing a sparkling Indian trouser suit. She had long, black hair that fell to her hips.

"Are you this mirror's guardian?" she asked, curiously, "You don't look like the others."

"I'm not like the others," the guardian replied, laughing, "I'm unique!"

"This is Meera. She is possibly the most impossible person in the entire universe. By rights, she shouldn't exist…" Charlotte began, but Sabrina cut her off,

"I know about magic mirrors, Charlotte, I live with one," she informed the older girl sarcastically,

"I'm not a magic mirror," Meera snapped,

"WHAT?" Sabrina yelped,

"She's half magic mirror," Charlotte told her, calmly,

"Mirror guardians aren't technically real. They're like computer programs or something. They can't have kids," Sabrina said, frowning,

"Tell me, Sabrina, can you remember when you first came to Ferryport Landing? Did you, or did you not discover that Jack the Giant Killer had beaten Mirror up? Since when do computer programs bruise?" Meera argued,

"Sabrina's right actually, Meera. Most mirror guardians are no more than virtual images, but that was a change introduced _after _the prototype was made," Charlotte explained,

"Fudge! That must mean you're…" Sabrina trailed off, staring at Meera,

"The Master's daughter," Meera finished for her. The huge hall was filled with silence as Sabrina stared at the two girls.

"You don't look much like him," she said eventually,

"I take after my mother. She was a jinni," Meera replied, quietly,

"But how…?" Sabrina didn't finish her question. It was one that no sane person would be found asking, because most sane people would not have believed in the existence of magic mirrors or jinnis, let alone their hybrid children.

"We aren't sure of the details. We only have what her mother told my parents before she was born," Charlotte answered,

"It's a really long story. Let's sit down first," Meera said, as a glittering thread streamed from her fingers. The thread wove itself around Sabrina, and she felt the tingling feeling that magic gave her. The thread laced a complex, gorgeous pattern around itself, becoming brighter every moment. When it became so brilliant that she could barely look at it, it suddenly disappeared, leaving three soft, fluffy beanbags on the floor.

Charlotte frowned as she collapsed onto one of the cushions, "Show off!"

"It's easier with the sparklies," Meera defended herself, but Charlotte only rolled her eyes in response.

Sabrina sat down on the last beanbag, "Can we please get back on the subject?" she prompted,

"Right," Meera agreed, looking at Charlotte,

Charlotte crossed her legs on her beanbag, and began her tale, "My parents were Anisa and Matthew Perrault. In case you didn't know, Charles Perrault, like the Brothers Grimm, recorded incidents involving Everafters, and my family are his descendants. My parents would receive and store many of the magical objects the Andersen triplets discovered. They would also occasionally help out the Everafters who hadn't boarded The New Beginning, not that they needed to, as the particularly troublesome ones had all left for America."

"One day while my mother was pregnant with me, the Andersen triplets turned up with a magic lamp. It was brass, and very battered looking. They said they had picked it up in China. They hadn't wanted to release the jinni in case it was dangerous, but my mother let her out. Her name was Alethea, and she told her story to my mother."

"She had been accidentally transported to Ferryport Landing while within the Magic Mirror owned by Snow White. The mirror's guardian had fallen in love with her, and had used a love potion to seduce her. She discovered she was pregnant with the guardian's child. However, it was around this point that the potion began to wear off. She succeeded in fleeing Ferryport Landing with her lamp before the barrier went up."

"The nature of a magic lamp means that the jinni cannot be out of it for long periods of time, and that while they are in the lamp, time doesn't pass for them. Alethea slept in her lamp for several hundred years. She wasn't woken at all, none of the people who owned her knew how. However, her dreams of her original home in Arabia compelled each person who bought or found her to help her travel closer to her home. She might have reached her family again if the triplets hadn't found her and brought her to my parents in London. My parents helped her to keep out of her lamp as much as possible, hoping for her to have a relatively normal pregnancy, no matter how bizarre the birth was going to be. However, the birth didn't turn out how they'd planned…"

"What happened?" asked a wide-eyed Sabrina, "Couldn't they use Donnoga Root or something to help her?"

"Neither my parents nor Alethea knew about Donnoga Root. Rhiannon didn't manage to track some down in time. Alethea died from loss of blood. The glass of her daughter's mirror cut her to pieces inside. I grew up alongside Meera, not knowing that my best friend was part-magic-mirror, part-jinni. I didn't even know why my friend had a bigger room than me, why I wasn't supposed to talk about her at school, or even why lots of weird people turned up on the doorstep. I always thought there would be more time to ask them about it," Charlotte finished, biting her lip. Meera patted her shoulder, and she seemed to pull herself together, "What else did you want to know?"

"Why did you sneak off without me?" she asked, trying to keep from sounding hurt. '_Does Daphne feel like this when I sneak off without her? Why do I even care she's sneaking off without me and keeping secrets from me anyway? I barely know her._'

"I didn't want to wake you up. Being tired in the morning here isn't exactly fun. You don't get any time off here," Charlotte explained,

"What were you talking about?" Sabrina enquired next,

"I was asking what exactly was required to free your sister and Puck from the control of the Goblin's Mirror," Charlotte replied,

"What did you find out?" Sabrina quizzed her eagerly,

"Nothing, you interrupted," Meera told her,

"Can you ask again now?" Sabrina demanded,

"I hate doing the omniscience thing; it always gives me a migraine!" Meera complained,

Charlotte rolled her eyes, "Don't be a baby, this is important. Meera, Meera, for better or worse, how can we break the mirror's curse?"

Meera's lips moved, but the voice that came out of them wasn't her own. The words flowing from her mouth were spoken with the voice of her father, "The curse of the Goblin's Mirror may only be broken by the tears of someone pure of heart who truly loves them. The nature of the spell placed on Daphne Grimm means that she cannot be freed until Puck is."

"Brilliant, Meera!" Charlotte smiled, while her friend clutched at her head,

"Are you going to go back to bed now?" she asked, plaintively, "I need a long lie-down in a dark room."

"Come one, Sabrina. Let's leave her to nurse her aching head," Charlotte whispered, leading Sabrina out of the mirror. The two girls made their way up to bed, but Sabrina still only slept restlessly. When morning came, she was still as tired as if she hadn't slept at all, and Charlotte's endless effervescence did nothing to improve her mood.

Breakfast was blessedly free of bizarre foods, but the unceasing chatter of the people at the table left Sabrina feeling slightly left out. Everyone seemed to have someone to talk to, and though Charlotte tried to speak to her when she could, there was always someone else to claim her attention.

At the end of the meal, the Everafters drifted away from the table, a few at a time. Sabrina turned to leave, only to find Charlotte at her elbow. She brushed passed her, trying to make her way to the library, but Charlotte kept pace with her.

"I'm sorry, Sabrina. I abandoned you at breakfast, didn't I?" she apologised, "I think I've found something to cheer you up, though,"

"What?" Sabrina looked up, curiosity ignited.

"We're going to the beach!" the other girl smiled,

"I don't have anything to swim in," Sabrina pointed out, frowning,

"You won't need a costume. It's too cold to swim in the sea in March. We're having a picnic," Charlotte replied, grinning mischievously. Sabrina got the feeling that there was something the older girl wasn't telling her, but she shrugged it off. After all, what was the worst that could happen on a picnic?


	9. Siren Song

**A/N: Thanks to obsessedwithbooks and tttoes5 (who get stars for guessing who Rhiannon is), Lara D, ilex-ferox (who also gets a star for working out Charlotte's name), and Schadenfreude62 for some more great reviews. **

**Disclaimer: I'm still not Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Nine

Sabrina stepped out of the front door to finally see the place in which she had spent the last two days. She had to admit, for something so different to New York, the place she preferred to any other, it was incredibly beautiful. Emerald grass swept down the slope of the hill before golden sands mingled with a sparkling, turquoise sea. The trees forming an avenue on either side of the path were just beginning to bud with new leaves, while a few still had white or pink blossom clinging to their branches. Behind her was a huge house, practically a castle, built of a warm, rust-coloured stone. It had wide windows, and four round towers with pointed roofs. It looked like something out of a fairytale.

"Come on, Sabrina!" Charlotte yelled. She was already halfway down the hill, and Sabrina had to run to catch up.

Suddenly Sabrina noticed something, "Wait a minute, where's the picnic?"

Charlotte looked guilty, "Some of the others are bringing it down later. We're going to visit someone first."

"Why are we even going on a picnic? There are way more important things we could be doing," Sabrina realised, angrily,

"There are children living with us, and those children need to be kept happy and out from underfoot. They are also too young, currently, to be able to do much to help. They need to _want_ to get older, so that their strengths develop. Someone has to look after them every day, and as I was planning to go down to the beach with you anyway, Rhiannon asked me to take them," Charlotte explained, as if it were obvious,

"So basically, we've got babysitting duty," Sabrina complained,

"No, we're doing something vitally important to save Puck and your sister, which just happens to be tied up with babysitting duty," Charlotte told her, "If you don't want to come, you don't have to, but it'll be more use than sitting in the library all day."

"How will looking after a bunch of kids help save them?" Sabrina asked,

"We're going to visit someone else before the kids arrive," Charlotte replied mysteriously,

"And how exactly is this mystery person going to help me?" Sabrina asked sarcastically. She had her doubts about the unknown person's ability to help her,

"Do you remember the conditions that need to exist to break the curse?" Charlotte enquired,

"Of course I do. The curse can only be broken by someone pure of heart who truly loves the cursed one," Sabrina recited, "and the curse on Daphne will only break when the curse of Puck does."

"So what exactly are we looking for?" Charlotte questioned, her indigo eyes gleaming wickedly,

"Someone pure of heart who truly loves – oh, no, I know where you're going with this and it's not going to happen," Sabrina said nervously,

"What?" Charlotte asked, innocently, "I never said anything."

"I know what you're thinking, and I have no idea why anyone would think it. You think Puck and I have some kind of secret crush on eachother, which only a curse like this would reveal. How many times do I have to say this? I don't love Puck, in fact, I hate him!" Sabrina glared at the other girl,

"I was actually going to point out that it would be useful to know if you actually were fully qualified to break the spell, whether you love Puck or not," Charlotte said, sharply,

"What do you mean?" Sabrina frowned, "Anyone who could break the curse would have to be in love with Puck."

"They would also have to be _pure of heart_, Sabrina. That's the part of the curse that interested me. I have no idea why you find the other part so remarkable," Charlotte looked at her curiously, and something in her gaze made Sabrina blush,

"Who are we going to see, anyway?" she queried, trying to distract Charlotte from wanting to know why she was blushing. She didn't even know herself.

"There's no point in me telling you. You won't have heard of her," Charlotte replied,

"How do you know?" Sabrina asked, irritated,

Charlotte sighed, "Sabrina, it's not that you don't know much about fairytales, but you obviously haven't studied many of the British ones. If you didn't know Katie's story, you definitely won't know this one."

"Tell me what it's called, and I'll tell you whether I've heard of it or not," Sabrina challenged,

"Fine, she's called The Merrymaid of Zennor," Charlotte told her,

"The _what_ of _where_?" Sabrina asked. The string of unfamiliar words seemed impossible to remember,

"The Merrymaid of Zennor," Charlotte repeated, "I knew you wouldn't have heard of her."

"Who exactly is the Merrymaid of Zennor?" Sabrina questioned, impatiently,

"A merrymaid is the Cornish name for mermaid, and Zennor is a town further west than here. Her name is Morwenna, and she used to live in the cove below the village, and was enchanted by the singing she heard coming from the church. She disguised her tail with a long gown, and made her way clumsily up to the church. When she reached the door of the church, she saw the singer. It was a young man named Matthew Trewella, and she could tell by looking at him that his heart was as pure as his voice was.

In that second, she loved him. She knew she would never again be able to just listen to the singing from the cove, so every Sunday she would stagger up to the church, just to watch him as he sang. However, what Morwenna didn't know was that Matthew watched her as intently as she watched him. One day, as she rose to leave, Matthew took her hand and stopped her,

'Why do you always leave us, fair one? Stay for one more song,' he pleaded,

It broke Morwenna's heart to reply as she had to, 'I cannot, I must return to the sea or I will die.'

'Then I will come with you. If the sea is your home, it is mine too.' With that, the young couple raced down the cliff path to the sea. The people followed them, but none could keep step with Matthew and his merrymaid. By the time they reached the seashore, the only person still following them was Matthew's old mother. She grabbed hold of the sweater she had knitted him, but was left with only a handful of wool as he and Morwenna vanished below the waves," Charlotte finished the story, the silvery words flowing from her tongue,

"What happened to Matthew and Morwenna?" Sabrina asked, almost hypnotised by the tale that she had seen playing out behind her eyelids. Charlotte's powers of storytelling seemed almost supernatural.

"They had seven beautiful children, but when The Scarlet Hand threatened the little ones, they left Zennor to come here. Morwenna is one of my godmothers, and Matthew one of my godfathers," Charlotte answered, "Morwenna still has the gift of seeing what is in your heart, and she can still be called to the surface by a pleasant tune."

"But why are you so sure that I could possibly break the spell anyway? I don't even like Puck, let alone love him!" Sabrina argued,

"Sabrina, have you ever been in love before?" Charlotte asked, gently,

"I'm only twelve, in case you've forgotten!" Sabrina retorted,

"That's not an answer," Charlotte's sapphire eyes seemed to bore into her, seeing secrets that Sabrina herself was unsure of, even afraid of. She stood petrified, like a rabbit caught in the gaze of a snake. Then Charlotte shrugged, breaking the spell, "Maybe you're right. Maybe you are too young, and I'm reading too much into this. I just thought it wouldn't hurt to find out if you were pure of heart, if you had any chance at all of saving your sister."

She turned back to the castle, but Sabrina grasped her arm, "Fine, I'll meet this mermaid, if you think it could help Daphne," she sighed,

"Brilliant, Sabrina!" Charlotte smiled, her face suddenly lighting up. Sabrina followed the older girl down the slope to where the waves washed the sand. There was a large rock that jutted out into the glittering water, and Charlotte scrambled up onto it, beckoning to the younger girl to climb up after her. When both of the girls were stood on the slippery, wet boulder, she turned to Sabrina, "You may want to cover your ears, this isn't a good thing for anyone, particularly humans, to hear."

Sabrina obediently clapped her hands over her ears, watching Charlotte curiously to see what exactly was going to do. Charlotte's lips began to move, as though she were speaking. Sabrina felt as though tiny, clawed hands were wrenching her hands away from her ears. Her hands suddenly fell limply to her sides. The sounds flowing from Charlotte's lips were unearthly, almost ethereal. It felt like the sounds were replacing the blood in Sabrina's veins with pure, liquid magic. The flowing, silvery sounds seemed to merge with the sound of the sea and the wind. It was as though the song was a part of her that she had never known to miss.

The sweetness of the music was lovely, yet somehow heartbreaking. Sabrina knew that soon the song would have to end, it was too pure to last for long enough, but she would throw herself off a cliff to hear just one more note of it. As the lovely notes grew louder and stronger, another voice joined it, weaving an intricate harmony with Charlotte's voice. Just as she felt the sounds could get no more bewitching, another voice joined the singer's, their glittering tones weaving around Charlotte's notes. While Charlotte's voice was silvery, this voice sounded like ringing crystal. The silver and crystal voices twined around each other, forming a complex, flowing chant which seemed to fill the air with silver sparks.

All too soon, the two beautiful voices reached the end of their song, the echoes of the final note fading as a head emerged from the waves. The merrymaid was as lovely as the spring morning, the curls framing her face the colour of pure gold. Her eyes were green as emeralds, matching the colour of the sea that she was dragging herself out of, and her tail was shimmering silver, casting rainbows onto the rock.

Sabrina saw none of this. She was straining her ears for one last note of the gorgeous singing; she didn't care if she never heard anything else again, but she had to hear just one more word of it, one more _syllable_. She would do anything to hear it again…

"Anything…" she whispered, not meaning to speak. Charlotte spun around, her face horrified.

"Oh, crap… She heard the song!" Charlotte gasped,

"If you slap her it should snap her out of it, but it won't get rid of the addiction," Morwenna said, worriedly.

Sabrina heard the words as if they were coming from millions of miles away. '_Addiction? _' she thought dimly, but her heart ached too much to think longer on it. It felt as if she had experienced heaven for a brief moment, only to have it snatched from between her fingers.

A sudden slap to the face brought her back to earth with a bang. The sudden sting made her forget, for a moment, the pain that the end of the song had given her. Her hand flew to her cheek as she looked up at Charlotte, "What was that for?" she said, annoyed,

"Thank God you're back!" Charlotte sighed, a relieved smile replacing her previously panicked expression, "I'm so, so sorry, though!"

"What for?" Sabrina asked, confused,

"For singing the Siren Song where you could hear, of course! I can't believe I did something so stupid!"

"The Siren Song?" Sabrina frowned. She was sure she'd read something about that somewhere…

"Rhiannon and I were both Charlotte's godmothers, so we gave her a gift each. Rhiannon's gift to her was courage. I gave her the Siren Song, which is a song which gives the singer power over people who've heard it before. I'm beginning to see that mine was by far less useful. Charlotte won't use it except to call to me," Morwenna explained. Her voice was beautiful, but she had the sing-song way of speaking which reminded her of the way the witches in Ferryport Landing spoke, "Why _did_ you call me up, anyway, goddaughter? Not that it's not a delight to see you, but I really should get back to the children."

"I'm sorry. I wouldn't have called you without warning if it wasn't urgent. This is Sabrina Grimm. She's the eldest of the Grimm daughters," Morwenna's sea green eyes widened as Charlotte continued, "Her sister, Daphne, and her… friend, Puck, have been brainwashed into joining the Scarlet Hand through pieces of the Goblin's Mirror. We really need you to find out if Sabrina can break the spell, because the glass can only be removed by the tears of someone pure of heart."

"That sounds serious. Can I take a look at you, Sabrina?" Morwenna asked. Sabrina nodded, stepping forward so she was no longer half-hidden behind Charlotte. Morwenna looked at her carefully, her aquamarine eyes searching.

The mermaid could tell many things about Sabrina from the glow surrounding her, the auras that everyone, both human and Everafter, possessed, but which only she could see. Sabrina's aura was spattered with red and black, fear, anger, and betrayal. The feelings were so murky that they obliterated the true colour of Sabrina's aura, the colour that reflected her heart. '_This will never do_' Morwenna frowned, sifting through the darker feelings that were clouding the girl's spirit. Sabrina suddenly felt a peaceful sensation fill her body, something she hadn't felt since the day her parents disappeared.

As Morwenna searched deeper through the swirling mass of colours, she could see a fierce loyalty to her family, her sister in particular, and confusion directed at her goddaughter. She even thought she saw the fragile, pale rose colour of love for a moment from the corner of her eye, but when she tried to focus on it, it vanished, as if it had never been.

Deeper, deeper, deeper she delved, into the more complex, more confusing feelings that lay close to the girl's bones. She delicately peeled away each layer until the glow was all one colour… Morwenna gasped. The light emanating from Sabrina was blindingly bright, an iridescent silvery white, shimmering with every colour of the rainbow.

Suddenly Sabrina shifted, impatiently, "Have you worked it out yet?" she asked, trying not to show her anxiety,

"You'll do," Morwenna replied, breathing deeply to try and get over her shock,

"What did you see?" Charlotte asked, excited,

"She's pure of heart, purer than almost anyone else I've seen before," Morwenna told the girls. Suddenly they heard a wail echoing up from the sea bed, "I really should be going now, I can hear Nerissa crying."

"Of course. Thank you so much for coming on such short notice," Charlotte sighed, looking relieved. Morwenna slipped back into the water with scarcely a ripple to mark her passing. Charlotte watched until the silver tail had vanished from sight, before turning to Sabrina. The younger girl's face was pale, "Are you OK, Sabrina?"

"I'm fine. Just – surprised is all," Sabrina sighed, sitting down on the warm stone, "At least that's one half of the conditions fulfilled."

Charlotte sat down beside her, and the two girls sat in silence, waiting for the others to arrive with the picnic, united in their wishes to understand the other. Though neither of them knew it yet, that understanding would only come after a more perilous adventure than either girl had ever faced...


	10. Trust

**A/N: Thanks to ttoes555, Ayns and Sky (who get tonnes of apologies for forgetting them in the acknowledgements last time), DeDe and Lara D, this chapter is out faster than I thought it would be. Next chapter could take a while, as I'm being forced to go camping with my family.**

**Disclaimer: I'm never going to be Michael Buckley and the only character I truly own here is Charlotte.**

Chapter Ten

Sabrina watched as Charlotte was surrounded by a throng of children. Most of them were peculiar-looking to say the least. There was a girl who seemed to have a rose growing in her forehead, and another who was gold from head to toe. A young boy had a swan's wing instead of a left arm, and a second had a long beaky nose and such long gangly legs that he reminded her of a cygnet.

Suddenly, a warm, wriggly bundle was dumped on her lap. She looked down, surprised. It was her little brother, who she hadn't seen since she had discovered that Daphne and Puck had joined the Scarlet Hand. She realised that it had only been yesterday, but it felt like a century had passed. She glanced up, and saw someone had sat down beside her. It was a boy, who looked around Charlotte's age. He had dark, coppery skin, and warm brown eyes. Covering his forehead and hair was a scarlet bandana.

"You're Sabrina, right?" he asked, smiling. Sabrina nodded, "Is that kid your brother? I wasn't sure I'd given you the right one, I don't know many of the younger ones here."

"Yes, thanks for bringing him to me," Sabrina replied. The little boy was gurgling and batting at the long, golden locks that tumbled around him.

"He's sweet. What's he called?" the strange boy asked, tickling the wriggling infant.

"Uh, I only saw him for the first time four days ago," Sabrina frowned, "I have no idea what the Master named him, anymore than I know your name."

"Sorry, I'm Chandra. Charlotte asked me to keep an eye on you for her," he replied,

"_What!" _Sabrina yelled, furious, "What does she think I am? A little kid? I don't need 'keeping an eye on'! I'm able to look after myself; she should know that if she thinks she knows anything about me!"

"Maybe I should rephrase that. She actually said 'Could you check Sabrina's OK? Stop her from brooding over the curse on her sister and Puck, it won't help. Oh, yeah, and take her brother to her. He might distract her from being miserable. '," Chandra explained,

Sabrina looked down at the little boy on her lap. His curly, cherry-red hair was obviously her grandmother's, he shared his round, happy face with her father and Daphne, but his bright green eyes were shared by Veronica and Sabrina. Her younger brother's features reminded her of the family she loved and missed so much – well almost all of her family. She didn't want to think of the one other person she missed who wasn't related to her by blood. For some reason, his betrayal hurt her even more than Daphne's, even though she knew the cause of his treachery was beyond his control. She shook herself mentally. Why did she care so much about Puck, anyway? Surely she should be happy not to wake up to spiders in her bed, or to be regularly soaked in disgusting substances.

Her reverie was broken when Chandra spoke again, "He needs a name, you know."

"What do you think I should call him?" Sabrina wondered,

"I don't know. He's your brother," he replied,

"I don't know…" she looked again at the child on her lap. He reached up with a little, starfish-like hand to touch her face, "How about… Adam?" The little boy gurgled and laughed happily, "Did you like that? OK, Adam it is." The newly named Adam Grimm clapped his hands, before snuggling up to her and falling sound asleep. '_That's another thing he shares with Daphne_,' she thought, affectionately.

"I know it can be tricky to adjust to life here, so I was wondering if you had any questions," Chandra said after a while,

"Are you an Everafter?" Sabrina began, starting with the least difficult to answer of her many questions,

"Yes," he replied,

"What fairytale are you from?" Sabrina then asked,

"You probably won't have heard it…" he began,

"Why do people keep saying that?" she interrupted, irritated,

"Because many of the Everafters here come from little-known stories. Most of the really famous ones were on The New Beginning," Chandra explained,

"Well, what story _do_ you come from?" she repeated,

"It's called The Girl with the Sun in her Eyes. It's an Indian fairytale which is the basis for most versions of The Dancing Water," he began. Sabrina nodded to show she knew of that particular fairytale, "My mother was a fortune teller who prophesied that she would marry the king and give birth to a son with the moon on his forehead, and a daughter with the sun in her eyes. The king came to hear of this prophecy, and married her, while marrying her two sisters to his general and his chief advisor.

Soon, she fell pregnant, but just before the baby was due, the king had to go on a journey. When the baby was born, a bright, silver light filled the room. It was coming from a moon on his forehead. That baby was, as you've probably guessed, me. However, my aunts grew jealous that my mother was so fortunate, and threw me into the river, while telling my father that my mother had given birth to a puppy. The king was greatly grieved, but didn't want to hurt his young wife.

Meanwhile, rather than drowning, I had been discovered by a fisherman and his wife, who, being childless, decided to adopt me. So that nobody would think I wasn't their son, they disguised the marking on my head with a headscarf. They named me Chandra, after the moon marking on my forehead."

"Why?" Sabrina asked,

"Chandra means 'moon' in Sanskrit. If you're going to interrupt, there's no point in me continuing this story," the boy said, irritably,

"Sorry," she apologised,

"Four years passed, and again, my mother fell pregnant. This time the room was filled with a golden light, and the baby was a girl with eyes like two bright suns. Again, my mother's sisters were stricken with jealousy, and threw her into the river, claiming the queen had given birth to a kitten. This time, the king flipped and locked her in a tower.

Meanwhile, my sister floated down the river, and was rescued by the same family who adopted me. They named her Yamuna, after the river that had delivered us to them, and taught her never to raise her eyes for fear people would realise she was a foundling. We lived happily for a while, until one day, I saw a poster advertising a reward for bringing the king the Speaking Bird, a bird which always told the true answer to any question asked of it. Apparently, he wanted to ask it why he had been so unlucky in marrying a 'false' prophetess. The reward was a lot of money, and my adopted parents were very poor. I wanted to get the reward to buy Yamuna some new shoes, so I set off on my mission.

On my journey, I met an old woman who asked me to share my lunch with her. Stupidly, I refused, and continued on my journey. Eventually, I reached a mountain. The Speaking Bird was perched at the top, so I began to climb. However, as I climbed, I began to hear things. They were faint at first, so faint I could barely hear them, but they grew louder. Then I began seeing things too – terrible things, Sabrina," his eyes were distant, and he seemed so afraid that he was shaking, "I cried out in fear, and in that moment I was turned to solid stone.

After a few weeks, Yamuna began to worry about me, and decided to look for me. She did share her lunch with the crone, who told her that the way to claim the Speaking Bird and turn me back to flesh and blood. Apparently, the mountain was cursed so that if you were climbing it, you would turn to stone if you spoke.

Yamuna got the bird, and I got turned back into a human. Then we took the Speaking Bird to the king, we're it revealed that he'd been an idiot, and that we were his kids, and that he should release our birth mother from the tower. That's where the happy-ever-after is supposed to have happened."

"What happened instead?" Sabrina asked quietly. The sorrow in his eyes belied any hope of a true happy ending for this boy and his sister,

"Being locked up in a tower for fourteen years drove my mother mad. My father ditched her and disowned us, so I stole the Speaking Bird back from him. We ended up travelling around Asia and Europe for several hundred years, but then the Scarlet Hand came looking for the Speaking Bird. That's why I decided to come here. I couldn't put Yamuna and my mother in danger by continuing to travel…" he tailed off,

"But you're happy here, aren't you?" Sabrina asked. She liked this boy; he didn't treat her like a kid even though she was younger than him.

He smiled crookedly, "In a way. I mean, I don't have to look after my mother and Yamuna alone anymore, and there are lots more people who I can talk to and who understand me. But…" Again, he hesitated,

"But what?" Sabrina questioned,

"I still can't look my little sister in the eye, even after so many years. It's my fault she had to climb that mountain and see all those… nightmares. It's my fault the Scarlet Hand came after us, because I just _had _to get revenge on my idiot father. Then there's Charlotte…" his voice faded,

"What about her?" She saw the look on his face, and she could tell exactly what he meant, "Oh, OH! Does she know?"

"Yes. She said she didn't currently trust her judgement when it came to people. Apparently, her last boyfriend was involved in the death of her parents," he told her.

Sabrina gasped. Sure, she had been hurt when she had discovered Mirror's betrayal, but she hadn't been in love with him! "I don't really blame her for that," she replied,

"Neither do I," he sighed, "Her parents' death messed her up more than she lets anyone see, and she won't let anyone help her, she's too independent. It's ironic really. I'm supposed to be a prince, a hero, but I can't even rescue myself, let alone a princess!"

"Princess?" she frowned. Sure, Charlotte was sweet and sort of pretty (though nothing compared to some of the princesses in Ferryport Landing), but a princess?

"There's a lot you don't know about Charlotte Perrault, and some of it is stuff she doesn't know herself," Chandra said, mysteriously,

"Like what?" Sabrina demanded,

"I bet she hasn't told you that, in the same way you're descended from the Brothers Grimm, she's descended from Charles Perrault on her father's side. She's secretive like that, and it has probably cost her to reveal as much as she has to you." He smiled bitterly, probably remembering an occasion when that same secretiveness had hurt him,

"But what did you mean when you called her a princess?" she asked, swallowing the hurt she felt,

"Have you ever heard of Shahrazad?" Sabrina nodded. She had read The Arabian Nights not long ago, and the memory of the story-telling princess was still fresh in her mind, "Charlotte is something like her great-great-great-great etcetera granddaughter, on her mother's side. I met Shahrazad once. Charlotte's a lot like her. Both brave, secretive, fiercely independent…" he smiled, this time gently, "and both always there when you need them most."

"One last question – why are you telling me all this?" she questioned.

"You don't really trust anyone here. I thought that if someone trusted you, you'd learn to trust them in return." He got to his feet, turning back towards the castle, "You coming?"

Sabrina followed him, her thoughts a whirl…


	11. Prophecies

**A/N: I have returned from the evils of sleeping under canvas ready to write new chapters! I'm really sorry this took so long, and you'll probably have a long wait until Chapter Twelve, as I'm off to Spain for a week.**

**To ttoes555: I'm sorry you found last chapter boring, it is important in the grand scheme of things, and tells you a lot about both Sabrina and Charlotte.**

**To obsessedwithbooks: I realised that after going through the seventh book again, but I'm going to keep her green-eyed in my story because it's one detail in the last book, and up until then, I'd always thought of her as green-eyed.**

**Thanks to DeDe and Scadenfreude62 for more fantastic reviews.**

Chapter Eleven

"Charlotte?" Sabrina said hesitantly,

The older girl looked up from her book, "Yes?" she replied, swinging her legs down from the window-seat where she was perched, and patting the space beside her. Sabrina obediently sat on the soft cushion. She didn't want Charlotte to be irritated before she'd even begun to ask questions that would probably annoy her to the point of wanting to kick her out of the room.

"At the beach, Chandra told me I don't trust people enough. Why does everyone think that?" Sabrina asked. At one point or another during all her adventures, someone, be it her sister, her grandmother, or Puck, had said this to her. Now, she wanted to know why.

Charlotte smiled wryly, "I was wondering when you'd pluck up the courage to ask me that. I thought he'd put you off asking me any questions ever again. I'm secretive, sure, but I need your trust more than I need my secrets. To answer your question, I've been watching you for your uncle since before you came to Ferryport Landing. Time after time, you saved both your sister and yourself from the cruel, the evil, even the insane foster parents that psycho social worker sent you to. You were so brave, far braver than I could have been in such circumstances.

However, as I watched you drift from foster home to foster home, I could see you change, getting more and more mistrustful of those who offered you help. When your grandmother brought you to Ferryport Landing, you were too suspicious to be able to settle in properly, so you've had trouble dealing with the mysteries you've discovered there," she sighed, twisting a lock of her mahogany hair round her finger, "I won't pretend I know everything about you, but I do know that you can't carry on without trusting _anyone_. I know you aren't a lost cause, Sabrina. You _can _trust people, you just don't want to."

"How do you know?" Sabrina whispered. The other girl's words were painful to hear, but she could see the truth in them. She _didn't _want to trust people anymore; she felt the pain too much when they betrayed her. So how could the other girl maintain such belief in her?

"Do you remember when I saved you from being made into a mirror guardian?" Sabrina nodded as Charlotte continued, "You didn't know anything about me, but you took my hand and trusted me anyway."

"I can't…" she murmured, "Too many people left me. What if you abandoned me after I trusted you?"

"I won't abandon you. Never," Charlotte said, fiercely,

"Why not?" Sabrina asked, feeling like a child,

"It's a long story," she began, wrapping her arms around herself, "When I was twelve, I met a boy at school who basically seemed perfect. He adored me and all my friends were jealous. Pretty soon, he was the most important thing in my life.

Then I came home to find my parents dying. I didn't want to believe it at first, but he killed them. He was a member of the Scarlet Hand, an Everafter. His dad was Bluebeard; they share similar… tastes." Her sapphire eyes were glassy, as if the words flowing from her lips were coming from a place outside her mind,

"Tastes?" Sabrina asked in as hushed a voice as she could, not wanting to break the strange spell Charlotte seemed to be under.

"He had charisma that was supernatural. He could make almost any girl on Earth fall for him with a smile. I fell for that smile, and so did so, so many other girls. It was the smile that killed them, the smile that could have killed me. He took everything they had, so that they thought he was the only thing they had in the world, and then killed them. Sometimes, if they were particularly interesting to him, he'd toy with them, like a cat with a mouse.

Those were the ones who had it worst. He'd set them on the road to what seemed like a happy ending for them, maybe even propose, but kill them just before the wedding. That would have been my fate, if I hadn't got home before my parents died, and if my mother hadn't told me to call Rhiannon. If I'd arrived to find them already dead, he would have turned up and pretended to be my rescuer, only to kill me too, eventually," she said. Her voice was dull, as though she were only reading the bitter words off a page. It was by far more terrible than when she had wept over them, as though the electric spark of life inside her had died. This dreadful emptiness seemed to be something that could be neither healed nor comforted.

"Oh, Charlotte," she whispered, knowing now why the older girl had shown her such understanding when she first arrived. Gently, she placed a hand on her arm.

"You're probably wondering what this has to do with your question…" Charlotte said, her voice slightly more animated than it had been while telling her tale.

"A bit," Sabrina admitted, sheepishly,

"I've never had anyone to whom I could tell this whole story to before. I left my friends in London behind when my parents died. Most of the people here are lovely, but I can't tell them that I not only led the wolf to my door, I let him in and laid him a place at the table. Sure, they'd nod and smile, but secretly they'd wonder how I could possibly be such an idiot. Rhiannon was my mother's best friend, she'd be heartbroken if she realised that her daughter of all people was responsible for her death. Meera's sweet, but she's always sunny and bright. She can't be unhappy; it's not in her nature. As for Chandra… He'd try to tell me it wasn't my fault, even partially. He always believes the best of me," She smiled crookedly, "He deserves a lot better than a messed-up girl like me, and until I can de-mess myself, the best I can do is be his friend, nothing more.

As you can probably tell, I've been feeling very lonely, so you were kind of a combination of the sister I never had, and an imaginary best friend. When ever I felt like an outcast, I'd get Meera to show me you. Sometimes, if you weren't in trouble yourself, I'd talk to you. I know it sounds crazy, that the person who I thought of as my best friend didn't know of my existence until two days ago but I needed someone who wouldn't just listen to me out of pity or affection, but who would just _understand. _Somehow, I get the idea you need the same thing," she sighed. Sabrina didn't know what to say. The closest thing she'd had to a friend in Ferryport Landing had been Puck. But did she really want to be friends with the girl who even a boy who was in love with her called 'messed up'? The answer shocked her with its strength: _Yes_. No matter how messed up Charlotte Perrault was, Sabrina could tell that she'd make a good friend.

However, as she opened her mouth to say these words, a loud shriek startled them, making them jump to their feet. Charlotte immediately began running down the staircase. Sabrina followed her quickly, first down the spiral steps, then along a corridor. The screaming continued, growing louder and louder with each step they took. Suddenly, Charlotte threw open a door to reveal a wild-eyed young woman knelt on the floor of a dark bedroom. The agonised howls were coming from her mouth, sounding as though she were in terrible pain. She was shaking hard, her breath coming in loud gasps. Charlotte knelt beside her, trying to soothe her cries. Sabrina joined her, but the two girls could do nothing to calm her. If anything, the shaking grew worse, and the screams that seemed to tear her throat apart grew hoarser.

Suddenly, gentle hands took hold of Sabrina's shoulders, tugging her and Charlotte away from the woman. It was Rhiannon, her hazel-gold eyes worried. She took Sabrina's place, her long, copper hair half-shielding the woman from the younger girl. In Charlotte's, Chandra knelt. Craning her neck, Sabrina could see that the screaming woman had collapsed backwards, so that her head was rested on Rhiannon's lap. The flame-haired woman lifted her head up with one arm, while with the other hand she tipped a flask of lilac liquid down her throat. Immediately, the woman's trembling and screaming ceased, her entire body going limp. Rhiannon gently lowered her head back to the floor. Then she stood back with Sabrina and Charlotte.

"Charlotte, you and Sabrina don't need to be here," she whispered to them, as they watched the now quiet woman's eyes flicker,

"Chandra needs me!" Charlotte argued,

"And Sabrina?" Rhiannon half-smiled at her charge's argumentative ways. Charlotte stood on her toes to whisper something too quiet for Sabrina to her, "Oh, I see. Stay for the time being, then."

The woman on the floor suddenly groaned, hauling herself upright.

Chandra asked the woman something anxiously in a strange language, taking one of her hands in his as though she was incredibly breakable. Sabrina realised with a gasp that this must be Chandra's mother. '_Poor Chandra!_'' she thought

The woman replied in the same language, as calmly as if she hadn't been screaming her head off a few moments ago, so calmly that you might believe she had never screamed so in her life.

"She wants to know who we are," Rhiannon translated, though her eyes never moved from the mother and son speaking rapidly in a language Sabrina and Charlotte could not understand. In the next sentence Chandra spoke, Sabrina heard her own name, Charlotte's, and Rhiannon's. His mother replied with curious glances at the teenage girls.

Chandra nodded to her, before looking at the girls, "She wants to read your fortunes, Sabrina first," Sabrina cautiously took a few steps towards the woman. She was afraid to go near her; it wasn't as though she had any experiences that would make her even slightly at home around the mentally unstable, "Remember what I said about trust, Sabrina. You don't believe Charlotte and I would let her hurt you, do you?" Chandra said softly, moving aside. This reassured her slightly. Charlotte gave her a gentle push, making her stumble the last few steps towards the woman. She knelt so their faces were level. The woman held up her hands so that her palms were facing towards Sabrina. Carefully, Sabrina placed her palms against them as though they were playing a clapping game.

"You are Sabrina Grimm?" the woman asked, in hesitant, thickly accented English. Sabrina nodded, "Good. Hear what I say, girl, and remember well." He voice changed suddenly, as if there were a choir of angels in her throat.

"_To survive the darkness, you must remember three things,_

_First, the princess is not dead, but sleeping, to be woken by birdsong,_

_Second, fear of the flames will make you follow in your namesake's steps,_

_Third, the words of foxes are the sweetest poison, but love can conquer death._"

Sabrina gasped, pulling her hands back as though she had been stung. She sprang to her feet, and ran from the room, not waiting to here Charlotte's fortune. Something about the woman's mysterious words had chilled her to the bone with fear.

She fled up the spiral staircase, collapsing on her bed in Charlotte's room. '_This is stupid!_'' she thought, furiously, '_I'm getting freaked out about something a lunatic said to me._' All the same, she stayed curled on the bed until her heart-rate had gone back to normal.

She made her way back down the stairs to find Charlotte. She didn't have to look far, as she and Chandra were stood in the corridor below the stairs. He was holding her close, as strangulated sobs tore from her throat. He stroked her hair gently. Looking up, he saw Sabrina leaning over the banisters, watching them. He beckoned her down.

"Why is she crying?" Sabrina asked him, as Charlotte was too tearful to speak,

"Her prophecy," Chandra replied. His voice and face were more solemn than she had ever seen anyone before, "Read this. I don't think I can say it aloud."

He handed her a scrap of paper covered in scrawling handwriting. It read:

_Brave maiden, death has dogged your footsteps for two years, and now it draws closer,_

_You will leave your home and those who love you on a great journey,_

_You will save many lives, and prove yourself a heroine many times over,_

_Yet you sacrifice yourself for another,_

_You will suffer great torment,_

_And you will murder and die before the autumn comes._


	12. Secrets of the Heart

**A/N: Charlotte Perrault seems to have her fans including Bluestocking inc. and Lara D. My little sister was the same when I told her about the prophecies.**

**To Ayns and Sky: Things start to speed up during and after this chapter, but the prophecies are a necessary evil. Sabrina is back as a main character, she only took a back seat while I was elaborating on Charlotte's character.**

**To fangfan5: Sabrina faints a lot in the first few chapters, but she does improve later.**

**To ttoes555: I'm glad you enjoy my prophecies and writing.**

**To thebookworm: Thanks for the encouragement. I try to double-check for errors, but I must have missed some.**

**To Amy: Glad you enjoy it.**

**Disclaimer: I'm not Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Twelve

"You mean she's going to…" Sabrina didn't need to finish her question. She could see the answer in Chandra's face. He pulled Charlotte closer, holding her as if he would never let go.

"I won't let her die," he said, uncharacteristically fiercely.

It was at that point that Charlotte snorted and pulled her head back from Chandra's shoulder, "You could let me breathe for a moment. I highly doubt there are any murderers lurking around the corner here of all places!" Though her face and eyes were red with crying and her face smeared with snot and tears, she somehow looked more like a princess than ever before. As she pulled away from Chandra's embrace, wiping her face, it was as though she had grown taller and slimmer in the half hour Sabrina had missed. However, as the redness faded from Charlotte's cheeks, there was one thing that Sabrina noticed more than any other. Her beautiful indigo eyes looked one shade closer to a bruise-purple.

_________________________________________________________

How does a household live when one of its members, the girl who was almost the heart of the place, was going to die? Everyone it seemed, during the next few days, drew closer to Charlotte. Even the little ones, even babies younger than little Adam, seemed to grasp every moment they could possibly get in her company. For all this, Charlotte, though she never showed it in most people's presence, clung to Sabrina, Chandra, and Rhiannon as though they were driftwood and she was drowning.

Four days after the prophecies had been made; the two girls were curled in their beds when Charlotte spoke, "Sabrina? Are you awake?"

"Yes," the younger girl replied, sitting up, "What is it?"

"What would you do for me if I offered to sing the Siren Song for you again?" Charlotte wasn't looking at Sabrina, but she heard her sharp intake of breath,

"_Anything_," she replied, instantly, not needing to think about her answer. What wouldn't she give to hear that heartbreaking, breathtaking music again?

"Would you…" Charlotte frowned, trying to think of something to gauge the depth of her addiction to the Siren Song, "force your entire family to leave Ferryport Landing?"

"Yes," she replied. She'd never liked Ferryport Landing, and who cared about the barrier? Hearing the lovely music again was so much more important, her family would understand.

"Would you… throw yourself off a cliff?" was the next question Charlotte asked, feeling her heart sink as the other girl nodded enthusiastically,

She narrowed her eyes, this time requesting something she was sure Sabrina wouldn't agree to, "Would you kill Puck?"

"No." The word escaped from her mouth before she had time to consider any other answer, "I'll never do that."

Charlotte's face, which had grown paler since the prophecy had been made, suddenly lit up with joy. Her eyes grew bluer, returning them to a lovely indigo, and her smile was brighter than Sabrina had ever seen it before, "Oh, Sabrina! Do you know what this means?" she cried, happily,

"No," Sabrina frowned, leaning back on her elbow and absentmindedly twining a lock of hair around her finger,

"Silly!" Charlotte laughed, "What's resistant to all forms of magic, including the Siren Song?"

Sabrina felt her face turn scarlet. She may not have been allowed to read fairytales as a child, but she knew enough to tell what Charlotte meant, "I'm not – I don't…"

The older girl raised her eyebrows, the joy fading from her face, "Really Sabrina, I thought you were braver than that."

"What do you mean?" Sabrina gasped, insulted,

"If you don't have the courage to admit you can break the spell, what hope is there of you being able to break it anyway." Charlotte lay back down and rolled so she was facing away from Sabrina.

Her cold words cut the younger girl like a knife. '_Why do I want her to think I'm brave?'_ she wondered. The answer flashed through her mind instantly, '_Because you respect her, you see her as more of an equal than you've seen anyone near your age for two years. Because she's the closest you have to a friend. Because…_' the next thought seared all other thoughts like a firebrand, '…_she could just be right about you and Puck._'

'_NO!_'' the part of Sabrina's mind that clung to her old views screamed, but it was overwhelmed by a flood of memories… _Puck under the school, trying to fight the Big Bad Wolf… Puck saving her from the Jabberwocky at the old asylum… Their first kiss… Puck catching her as she fell from Oz's balloon… Puck sitting next to her on the trampoline, telling her she didn't need makeup… The fear in his face after she fell from the water tower… Sitting on the steps beside him in Munchkinland… Chandra's words about Charlotte: "She's always been there for me when I needed her most…" _Always there for her...

Was Puck always there for her? No, she already knew the answer to that already. Annoying, smelly, and immature though he might be, he _had_ always been there for her, and had saved her life more times than she could count. What did this make him to her? A friend? Remembering how irrationally angry she had been when she had discovered Moth was his fiancée, even she found that the word 'friend' had trouble covering how she felt about Puck.

So what was the answer then? Could Charlotte be right? Sabrina would deny it with her last breath, but she probably was. '_You can die denying it as much as you like,_' a nasty voice in her head hissed, '_but would you let your sister die because you're incapable facing your feelings? _' She couldn't and wouldn't answer that question.

She flopped back onto the bed with a sigh. Why did thinking about things only make them more complicated? Shutting her eyes, she hoped that sleep would come quickly.

________________________________________________________

She had no such luck. By the time the pink light of dawn had crept through the curtains, Sabrina felt as though she had barely closed her eyes. Knowing that sleep was now impossible, she got out of bed and tiptoed down the staircase. Following the delicious scent of pancakes that was coming from the floor below, she found her way to the kitchen. Rhiannon was there, her long red hair pinned back in an untidy bun. She turned as she heard the door creak.

"Someone's up early," she commented with a kind smile, "Sit down at the table. The first lot are almost done."

Sabrina sat down at the worn wooden table, watching her as she flipped the pancakes expertly and stacked the cooked ones high on a plate. Finally, she spooned thick golden syrup over the pile. As she carefully placed the plate in front of the girl, she caught a glimpse of the tired face she was hiding behind the long blonde hair.

"Oh dear, she's talked to you about it then," she said, kindly. Sabrina only sniffled in reply. The effects of barely any sleep combined with confusion about Puck and her unhappiness over Charlotte's chilly words the night before had made her slightly more given to tearfulness, "and knowing my Charlotte she probably didn't mince her words." She sat down opposite her, her face concerned, as she continued, "She didn't mean to hurt you with what she said. She's got a sharp tongue, and doesn't always remember to sheath it when discussing subjects which need… delicate handling to say the least."

"I'm only twelve!" Sabrina burst out suddenly, "Isn't that too young for love stuff? Doesn't she know I have enough to deal with without romance getting in the way? She should if she's been watching me so much! And…"

Here, Rhiannon cut her off, "She's just frustrated because she's utterly dependant on you to break this spell. She hates needing help, it's the independence thing. She thinks you've got the power to break this spell, but that you won't admit it to yourself."

Sabrina was reminded of Granny Relda's words after the Jabberwocky was killed, '_Sabrina, you have powerful friends, powerful family, and a powerful heart. Giving you magic, child, would be a bit of overkill._' It was odd that everyone went on about how much power she had, but she was really so helpless. She always needed someone to rescue her, and that person was increasingly Puck.

"You're far from helpless, Sabrina Grimm," Rhiannon said, reading her mind,

"If I'm so powerful, why do I always need someone to rescue me?" she asked, frowning,

"The fact that there was someone willing to rescue you is enviable enough." Rhiannon smiled wryly, "Something my goddaughter and I have in common is that there wasn't anyone to rescue us during our once-upon-a-times. But that's probably not the answer you want to hear right now. The other answer is that the power you possess is one that many long for."

"What's that?" Sabrina asked, frowning,

"You have a heart which is whole, true, and above all, pure. Many members of The Scarlet Hand long for a heart like that. The Queen of Hearts was once a girl not unlike your little sister, but when the man she loved mocked and rejected her, the sweetness in her heart was twisted beyond recognition into bitterness and hatred. Unknowingly, she still longs for the happiness she had when she was naïve and innocent. Your Mirror, Meera's father, is an even sadder case. He never had a heart, was never created with one. The closest he could get was when Meera's mother was with him. He longs to escape the barrier so he can find her again," Rhiannon's voice was soft as the tragic stories poured from her lips. Sabrina felt a slight pang of sympathy for these people for whom happy-ever-afters belonged to someone else.

"That doesn't excuse what they did, though," Sabrina said, harshly. These monsters didn't deserve sympathy, particularly hers after all they'd done to her,

"No, it doesn't," agreed another voice. Charlotte was standing in the doorway, looking guilty. Rhiannon stood up to dump another plate of pancakes on the table, before leaving the room. As she passed Charlotte she muttered something Sabrina couldn't hear. The girl nodded, before slipping into the seat opposite Sabrina.

"Hi Sabrina," she said, quietly. Sabrina could see that the older girl looked as tired as she felt.

"Hi," she replied, avoiding eye contact by digging into her pancakes. There was an awkward silence.

"I'm sorry about being a jerk last night," Charlotte sighed, breaking the quiet, "I'm just frustrated. It looked like we were so close to breaking the curse, and now we're back to square one."

"It's OK, I guess," Sabrina answered. Forgiveness had never come easily to her, but only someone whose heart had been surgically removed could resist the apologetic look on the older girl's face. It would be like kicking a puppy. '_She looks like Daphne with that expression,_' she realised. The poignant reminder of her little sister made her say something that she knew could cost her dearly, "And, Charlotte, I think you could be right." She hid her face behind her long hair, knowing she was blushing, "About me and Puck, I mean."

Charlotte pretended not to see her embarrassment, instead only smiling happily, "That means we should be finding a way to get you home then."


	13. A Surprise

**A/N: Thanks to all my incredibly patient reviewers who put up with the length of time it took to get the last chapter out.**

**To Lara D: I'm sorry the last chapter took so long, but it was an incredibly difficult chapter to write with all Sabrina's musings.**

**To fangfan5: Thanks for the appreciation!**

**To ttoes555: I'm glad you appreciate that part of the chapter, as it was so hard to write.**

**To Brina Grimm: That information hadn't been released when I began this story, and when it was released I already had the story in my mind, so I wasn't going to change it entirely to fit a new title. When Book 8 actually comes out this story, and any follow-ups I may do, will be marked as AU past Book Seven. Until then, I hope you keep reading and enjoy my story.**

**To Rosie Posie: I hate the fact that some of my favourite stories are never mentioned in retellings, so this is my way of putting all those into a story. My pacing is weird, but I'm hoping it will even out soon.**

**Disclaimer: I think I'd know if I was Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Thirteen

"…So we need some way to get back to Ferryport Landing _fast_," Charlotte finished,

"_We_?" Sabrina asked, frowning,

"What, you didn't expect me to let you leave all on your own?" Charlotte replied, incredulously, "Sabrina, you're my _friend_. I'm not going to let you go with no way of knowing whether you've even got across the Atlantic! Not to mention that, knowing you, you wouldn't bother going to the new fort for help. You'd go straight to Puck and Daphne and alone you'd be very, very dead. At least if I come then there's someone who can get you safe across the ocean no matter what form of transport we can find. I know as well as you do that you wouldn't be able to control it if it was magical."

Sabrina felt herself grow pale as she recalled the words of the older girl's fortune: '_You will leave your home and those who love you on a great journey,_'

"What about the prophecy?" she said, knowing her face and voice betrayed her fear.

Charlotte smiled, "The thing about prophecies is that you generally fulfil them by trying to avoid them. If Briar's parents had taught her to spin when she was younger, by the time she was sixteen she would have been too good at it to prick her finger. So maybe I can escape my fate if I ignore whatever the prophecy says and just do what I would do anyway. If I die…" she shrugged, "at least I'll have known it was coming, and I probably wouldn't have it any other way."

Sabrina stared at her, "Are you mental?"

"Probably," she grinned,

"I know she is," Meera cut in for the first time, "I've had to live with her my whole life. Now, are you two going to debate prophecy-paradox theory all night, or can I show you what could help you get home?"

"Sorry, Meera," the other two girls chorused, following her as she walked briskly past several doors before coming to one marked 'Transport'. She pushed it open to reveal a rather empty-looking room. There was a rather scuffed looking pair of boots in one corner. However, the thing that caught Sabrina's eye was standing in the middle of the room.

It was a huge sculpture of a horse, so tall that her father's head would only have reached its shoulder, and so lifelike that she could scarcely believe it wasn't about to neigh or shake its mane. Timidly, she brushed a hand against its side to discover that it was made of ebony, with every thin hair carved into it. It was almost surprising that it wasn't warm to the touch. She felt the tingle she always associated with magic, and pulled her hand away, quickly, though she ached for another touch. She clasped her hands tightly behind her back and stepped away from it. It was then that she noticed the golden saddle and bridle that were absolutely covered in glittering jewels.

"The Ebony Horse…" Charlotte murmured, "I thought it had been destroyed."

"Would you destroy something this amazing?" Meera asked, "Lady Rhiannon brought it here, ages ago, while we were still in London."

"I know that story! I read it to Daphne…" Sabrina tailed off. She felt a sudden sting at the reminder of the little girl she missed so much.

It must have shown in her face, because Charlotte placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "You'll see her again soon."

"How soon is soon?" Sabrina asked grumpily, trying to hide a feeling which felt similar to tearfulness.

"Tomorrow, provided I can convince Rhiannon to let me go," Charlotte said, casually,

"Tomorrow?" Meera looked stricken,

"What's the matter, Meera?" Charlotte asked,

"You can't leave tomorrow!" she wailed, "You can't! What'll I be here if you're not here? We've always stuck together, you can't just ditch me!"

"I'm not ditching you, I promise! I'll probably be home before November," Charlotte tried to comfort her, to no avail,

"But what if you aren't? What if the prophecy's right? What if you _do _die and I don't even get a chance to say goodbye?" Meera sobbed, tears running down her cheeks,

"What do I have to do to convince you I'll be safe to go to America?" she said, sighing,

"You could… But you wouldn't," Meera looked at Charlotte pleadingly.

"Wouldn't what? Tell me!" Charlotte commanded,

"Please, _please_ let me come too!" the mirror girl burst out, her eyes wide and tearful,

Charlotte looked helpless. Behind her, Sabrina looked cynical. She could tell a well-executed guilt-trip when she saw one, having a little sister had taught her that much at least. Charlotte, unfortunately, did not have any of Sabrina's experience with younger siblings.

"Meera, you know I can't do that. What if Rhiannon needs you here? What if you break on the way? And that's not even mentioning the fact that you're way too big to carry," she said,

"You know as well as I do Rhiannon's powerful enough to create her own magic mirror if she had to. She's also powerful enough to put a temporary shrinking spell on me if she had to. _Please_, Charlotte, I'm begging you!" Meera's voice was so compelling that even Sabrina was slightly convinced of her complete sincerity for a moment.

Charlotte threw up her hands, "Fine! I'll ask Rhiannon! Just don't expect her to let either of us go willingly." She stomped off, leaving Sabrina and Meera still standing in the Transportation room.

"You really shouldn't do that," Sabrina said, raising an eyebrow,

"Do what?" Meera looked innocent,

"You know what I mean. Manipulate her like that. Even _I_ know it'll drive her mad," Sabrina sighed, rolling her eyes,

"It's for her own good," Meera said defensively, "She's going to be completely alone in a foreign country, but she'd never even think of asking someone to go with her. She's too independent for her own good. She'll do well with you, Sabrina, you just don't have a cool head between you."

"I should catch up with her, before her temper does," Sabrina realised, setting off at a run.

When she reached the arch which led to the library room, she could hear the sounds of raised voices. She instantly recognised it as Rhiannon shouting. Stepping inside, she could see the lovely woman standing in the centre of the room by one of the large sofas. Books were scattered on the floor around her, as though she had suddenly jumped to her feet.

"No!" she half-shrieked, half wailed, her face anguished, "You can't leave!"

"But Rhiannon…" Charlotte began,

The woman cut her off, "I said no! I'll never let you go to that… that hellhole!" Her face was almost wild, completely different to the calm expression she normally wore.

Charlotte's face was bewildered, "But… why?"

Rhiannon sighed, her expression now shifting to one of heartbreaking sorrow, "Charlotte, I've lost both of my husbands, my only son, your parents, every single human I've ever cared about. You're the closest I've ever had to a daughter, and I'm not letting you go that easily."

Her loving words were gentle, but Sabrina felt as though the ground had been torn out from under her feet. There was no way she'd be able to steer the Horse on her own. She could barely drive a flying carpet around Ferryport Landing.

Suddenly, a voice rang out from the shadow in one of the room's many corners, "Let her go, Rhiannon." The speaker stepped into the light. It was Chandra, his face tired, "You can't keep her here forever. It's like with birds: keep her trapped and eventually she won't sing anymore. If you let her fly free, she'll come back again. You of all people should know that, Rhiannon." He moved to Charlotte's side, twining his fingers through hers. She didn't pull away, but turned to look at him curiously.

"Thank you, Chandra, but _why_?" she asked, staring up at him,

"Because I love you, Charlotte Perrault. I love you too much to keep you somewhere you don't want to be... and this is my way of hoping you fly back to me one day." His voice sounded choked, as though he were holding back tears.

Sabrina never expected what came next. Rather than turn him down gently but firmly, or even just plain rudely, she stood on tiptoe and planted a kiss on his lips.


	14. Flight

**A/N: Thanks to all the lovely readers who put up with the filler chapter last time. I'm glad so many people love Charlotte and Chandra as a couple. I got so many people reviewing to tell me how sweet they are together.**

**To Lara D: I'll try to update more frequently, I was really busy. I'm glad you like Charlotte and Chandra. I think of them as the Anti-Puck-and-Sabrina, because their relationship is a lot calmer, and they never prank/attempt to murder eachother. They're really calming to write, because Puck and Sabrina always argue, argue, argue!**

**To ttoes555: There'll be more fluffy sweetness before the end of this chapter.**

**Thanks to Ayns and Sky, Cookie-Dough-Always, Myrh Kerenza, BrendaReads-A-Lot, beanieluver101 and Vladfan4 who I've already replied to.**

**Reviews of all shapes, sizes and types are welcome as always, and cookies to those who can guess what Charlotte sings.**

**Disclaimer: I will never be Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Fourteen

"Of course I'll come back," Charlotte smiled when she'd pulled back from the kiss,

"Promise?" Chandra asked her, his arms winding around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"Yep," she replied, snuggling closer so that her head was resting on his chest. The entire room had gone quiet. Everyone, including Sabrina, was intent on watching the pair. She had to admit, they made a cute couple.

Rhiannon felt her eyes fill with tears. It had been five thousand years since her first husband had died, yet in that moment her heart ached for him, her first love whose death her heart had never quite healed from. In Charlotte's young face, she could see a reflection of her own expression when she had first met her Pwyll. She could see that Charlotte would never leave him willingly.

Swallowing the sobs that were building up in her throat, she said, "You can go, Charlotte, and take Meera with you, just…" she choked, "stay safe, my daughter."

Charlotte squirmed out of Chandra's embrace to throw her arms around her godmother, "Thank you, Rhiannon, thank you!" she wept. Her tears were from joy, but the tears the woman wept were from sorrow.

"I have lost too many of those I love to lose you too, Charlotte. Stay safe, my darling," she said, kissing the top of her head. She straightened up, sniffed and wiped her eyes, "Well, let's start packing. You'll need help if you're leaving early tomorrow morning.

"Go 'way, 'Brina," Charlotte groaned, rolling over, "'S too early."

"Come on, Charlotte," Sabrina pleaded, shaking her again, "We need to go!"

"We can go later," she yawned, "America'll still be there at a more sensible time. Like in three hours," She pulled a pillow over her head, only to have her friend tear the duvet off her bed. She sat up and whacked Sabrina over the head with the cushion she was holding.

"What was that for?" said Sabrina indignantly,

"Making me get up disgustingly early," the older girl replied, swinging her legs out of bed, "Grab as many clothes as you think you can layer up. It's cold enough to freeze your butt off above the clouds."

Sabrina rummaged in the drawers until she'd found two long-sleeved t-shirts, a short-sleeved one to wear underneath, two jumpers, two pairs of leggings and some black jeans.

"Take my warmest clothes, why don't you?" Charlotte complained, throwing one of the pillows at Sabrina. It missed her completely, but as the older girl was attempting to grab another pillow to throw, Sabrina made herself scarce before Charlotte's aim improved.

The bathroom clock showed the time in blinking red numerals: 4:10. Rhiannon had said that the flight on the horse would take around seven hours to reach Ferryport Landing if Charlotte didn't accidentally steer them into any storms. Seven hours. By eleven she could be back with her parents, her sister and… but she wouldn't think about that now. Her every nerve was jangling at the thought of what could go wrong. She didn't have a plan for breaking the spell. She didn't even want to think about how she could go about it. And she really, _really_ didn't want to think about what her mom and dad would say to her when she got back.

There was a knock at the door.

"Are you alive in there?" Charlotte's voice called,

"Give me a second," Sabrina yelled back. She turned to the mirror. Her green eyes were huge in a face that looked too pale, almost sickly against the brightness of her hair. With a sigh, she dragged that hair back into an untidy ponytail. She opened the door to find a half-asleep Charlotte standing outside, looking as bad if not worse than Sabrina. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun, and her eyes had purple shadows under them, giving her the look of a panda that had gone demented with purple eyeshadow.

"What are you laughing at?" Charlotte asked, irritably,

"You really aren't a morning person," Sabrina commented,

"Who is?" she replied, grumpily leading the way down the stairs to the front door. They stepped out into the chilly morning air. A yawning Rhiannon was waiting for them, leaning against the Ebony Horse. She was holding little Adam in her arms.

She started when she saw the girls, "There you are! I thought Charlotte had convinced you to give her an extra two hours beauty sleep."

"I tried," Charlotte complained, "She's so _mean_!"

Sabrina stuck her tongue out at her. Charlotte responded by glaring at her sullenly.

"Girls!" Rhiannon admonished them, "Sabrina, take your brother while I help Charlotte put the sling on." The warm, sleepy bundle was thrust into her arms while Rhiannon detangled the pile of straps he'd been lying on.

Sabrina looked at the face poking out of the blankets, and felt a sudden rush of affection her baby brother. As soon as they got home, she resolved to get to know this little person who was lying in her arms. He made a little snuffling noise, and for a moment she was afraid she had woken him, but he just inserted his thumb into his mouth and snuggled down again.

"Hand him over," Rhiannon commanded. Reluctantly, Sabrina passed him to her. The woman slipped him into the sling on Charlotte's back, planting a kiss on his forehead. Finally, she slipped a tiny mirror into Sabrina's hand. Rather than seeing her own reflection in it, she could see Meera's cheerful features. She slipped it into her pocket.

"Is that everything?" Charlotte asked,

"Almost," Rhiannon smiled. She pulled the girl into a tight hug. Sabrina was suddenly filled with a strange dread. For a moment, Rhiannon's long, scarlet tresses looked like blood staining Charlotte's clothes.

The chilling moment was broken when a dishevelled Chandra burst out of the house, looking around wildly.

"Have they gone?" he asked. His eyes focussed on Sabrina, and he sighed with relief, "Sorry, Rhiannon, Yamuna messed with my alarm clock."

Rhiannon only pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows, looking like a teacher who had heard a bad excuse for a piece of late homework. "Did you remember to get the bird?"

He nodded, holding out something covered by a cloth to Sabrina. She took it, enjoying feeling the tingle of magic beneath her fingers. She could feel bars through the cloth, and it was domed at the top.

"What is it? Is it a birdcage?" she asked, curiously,

"Yes," Rhiannon replied,

"Can I see?" Charlotte pleaded, "Please, you never let me look at them!"

"Not till you get to Ferryport Landing and tell Sabrina why you need it," Rhiannon told her firmly, removing it from Sabrina's hands and tying it to the Horse.

"Give it back!" Sabrina demanded, angrily,

"Sabrina," Charlotte cautioned her, "Don't touch it!"

"Why not? I'm learning to deal with magic, I can handle it!" Sabrina argued,

"Less powerful things, sure, but this is one of the most powerful magical objects ever created," Charlotte tried to explain, stepping from side to side to block the cage from Sabrina's view.

"It can't be that powerful, I'd be acting... a lot… worse…" Her voice faded when she saw Charlotte's triumphant smile,

"Ever heard the term 'when you're in a hole, stop digging'?" she giggled, "Are you ready to go yet, or shall we stand outside arguing till tomorrow afternoon?"

"Fine," Sabrina rolled her eyes, mentally cursing irritating teenage girls who thought they were always right.

"Wait!" Chandra cried, "Charlotte, I almost forgot, I've got something for you." He pulled a little wooden box out of his pocket, flipped the lid open.

"It's beautiful!" she gasped. Sabrina couldn't see what she plucked out of the box, but when whatever it was touched her skin, it _glowed_. Charlotte was caressing it gently with her fingertips, as though it was the most beautiful thing in the world. Chandra took it out of her hands, making the glow fade. He gently twirled her around and slid it into her hair, making it light up again. Sabrina could see now that it was a hair-slide. It was fashioned into a silver swirl with two holes at either side that a wooden pin was speared through.

"Thankyou, oh thankyou!" Charlotte cried, throwing her arms around his shoulders. Chandra scooped her up in his arms, and lifted her onto the Horse's saddle. She squeaked and swatted at his head. He only laughed, seizing the hand and kissing it.

"That wasn't fair," Sabrina remarked, amused,

"It's your turn now," Charlotte laughed as Chandra grabbed her and lifted her onto the saddle. Now it was her turn to squeak and swat at him, but he ducked out of her range.

"Have fun, girls," Rhiannon smiled, as Charlotte leaned down to kiss her cheek.

"Don't forget me!" Chandra grinned,

"As if we could," Charlotte smiled. But as she bent down to kiss him goodbye, he clung to one of her hands.

"Do you have to go?" His voice was pleading,

"You know I do," Charlotte said, sniffing. She smiled sadly, and raised their joined hands to brush his cheek, "_I'll come back, when you call me, no need to say goodbye…_" She sang these words, gently. Chandra loosened his grip on her hand, enough so that she could pull it free, "No need to say goodbye…" she repeated to herself, before twisting the peg that made the Horse rocket up into the sky.

Chandra watched as the girl he loved shrank to the size of a doll, then to the size of an ant, and finally she was just a speck in the distance, like one more star in the early morning sky.

"Whoa!" Sabrina gasped, "That was terrifying!"

"But you have to admit it was fun!" Charlotte grinned,

"I bet it scared Adam, though," she insisted, trying to see over Charlotte's shoulder to check on him.

Charlotte looked down at the child strapped to her chest. He hadn't opened his eyes once, "Sleeping like a baby, still," she smiled,

"Just like Daphne, she can sleep through anything," Sabrina realised,

"Really? He's so like you!" Charlotte exclaimed,

"How do you mean?" Sabrina asked,

"Well, the first time I went to pick him up, he screamed, yanked on my hair, and attempted to bite me," Charlotte giggled,

"Hey, I've never tried to bite you!" Sabrina argued,

"That's because you can talk and understand what I answer back. Adam, here, has no way of saying 'Put me down, you crazy girl!' so he responded by attacking me," she explained, "No offence, Sabrina, but that's what you were like when I met you. You didn't want to trust me, even though I'd just saved you."

Sabrina blushed scarlet and said nothing. She knew it was true, but she could hardly help it. Would Charlotte trust be able anyone after going through the same experiences as Sabrina had? That was a question she couldn't answer. Was what the older girl had gone through better or worse? Sure, Sabrina had her parents back, something Charlotte could never have, but somehow, Sabrina envied the simplicity of her relationship with Chandra

"You're so lucky," she sighed, not meaning to speak,

"How do you mean?" Charlotte asked,

"Chandra doesn't prank you every three seconds, he's always there for you, he even makes you weird glow-in-the-dark hair-slides. Puck might be growing up for me, but he'd rather drink poison than own up to doing something nice for me," she said,

"Ah, I was wondering when we'd get onto this topic. What we have here, Miss Grimm, is a severe case of pigtail-pulling syndrome," Charlotte replied,

"Pigtail-pulling syndrome? Did you just make that up?" Sabrina asked suspiciously,

"No, that's what my mum used to call it. It occurs when a boy is madly in love with a girl, but hasn't got the guts or the maturity to own up to it. Therefore, to get her attention, he teases her, plays pranks on her, and generally makes her life a misery. That, my dear Sabrina, is pigtail-pulling syndrome."

"Weird way to put it," Sabrina frowned,

"I _am _weird," Charlotte laughed,

"Chandra doesn't seem to mind," she teased,

"Of course he doesn't. He's just as crazy, it just isn't so obvious," the older girl replied,

"Which would explain the glow-in-the-dark hair-slide," Sabrina said, prodding at it,

"Hmmm…" Was all Charlotte said in reply, but the back of her neck had turned scarlet,

"Wait, you're blushing. There has to be more to it than that. Come on, spill," she demanded,

"I don't know what you're talking about," Charlotte claimed, blushing a deeper red,

"Sure you don't. Spill already."

"No chance, you'll laugh."

"Spill."

"Are you going to keep this up for the whole journey?"

"Only if you don't answer. Spill."

"Hey, look, is that Iceland?"

"Nice distraction technique, but I still want to know."

"And I still don't want to tell."

"Tell me or I'll set Puck on you!" Sabrina threatened,

Charlotte rolled her eyes, "Fine, no need to get _nasty_!"

"Why does it glow then?" Sabrina asked for the final time,

"Promise you won't laugh?"

"Sure."

The older girl sighed, "If you're really that desperate to know, I'm – I'm scared of the dark," Sabrina couldn't help herself. She burst out laughing, infuriating Charlotte, "You said you wouldn't laugh!"

She got her giggles under control for long enough to choke out, "I'm sorry, it's just – the girl who punched the Master in the head – didn't freak out much when her death was prophesised – didn't even flinch at the idea of fulfilling part of it – afraid of the dark?"

"It's not that stupid a thing to be scared of. It's actually the world's most common phobia," Charlotte said, defensively,

"Sorry, I really shouldn't have laughed. I just figured you'd be scared of something… I don't know… more life threatening, dangerous," Sabrina answered, hesitantly

"Life threatening how?" the dark haired girl asked, curiously, her anger forgotten.

"Life threatening like…" she tailed off,

"Like what? Spit it out!" Charlotte commanded her,

"Like – like how I used to think Everafters were," she said, eventually,

Charlotte twisted her head around to stare at her with wide eyes, "_Used _to? As in 'don't anymore?' "

"Back at home, everyone, even Granny, told me what I was supposed to think, not letting me work it out for myself. It isn't like that here. I've got time to think about things like that," Sabrina explained,

"And what did you decide?" Charlotte asked,

"When my parents vanished, I didn't want to trust anyone. Everyone we were sent to live with was insane or sadistic. Then, in Ferryport Landing, I found out that Everafters took my parents. That twisted my view of the world. I felt that all my problems I'd had for two years were their fault. That kind of expanded to the _world's_ problems, and all anyone ever did was tell me how stupid I was acting. It felt like I was the only one who could see how evil they were…"

Charlotte interrupted her, "So what's changed?"

"Nobody here has even tried to tell me I'm wrong, even though most of them are Everafters. They've just tried to be nice to me when I'd said stupid stuff about them…"

"And?" she prompted,

"I think maybe they're like the rest of us. There are nice Everafters and psychos like the Scarlet Hand, just like there are nice humans like you and me, and psychos like Hitler. So maybe I shouldn't trust any straight off. But maybe I should give them a fair chance," she finished.

Charlotte's smile could have out-shone the sun, "Sabrina, you're probably the bravest person I've ever met. I couldn't admit to being wrong like that. I can't even admit to being afraid," Sabrina blushed, looking down at her feet.

Suddenly, she screamed in excitement, "Take us down! Take us down!"

She had seen the broad, grey strip of the Hudson River, winding through the woods that surrounded her hometown. She could even see a grey square that might be the castle where her family were. No matter how many dangers she had to face now, the only thought in her mind was '_I'm home_.'


	15. When It Rains

**A/N: Thanks to Aquamarine Jazz, Vladfan4, Lara D, ttoes555, iluvsummer95 and Cookie-Dough-Always for their fabulous reviews. **

**Disclaimer: I'm not Michael Buckley.**

Chapter Fifteen

"But why can't I come?" Charlotte demanded,

"Because they'd kill you on sight. I might have a chance, but you definitely wouldn't. Besides, someone has to stay with the Horse," Sabrina explained,

"What if the Scarlet Hand turn up here? Don't leave me on my own!" she pleaded. Her blue eyes were wide with fear,

"Fine, you can come… if you can catch up with me." With that, she turned her back on the older girl, and fled into the woods. She could hear Charlotte calling her name, but she didn't turn back once. She felt slightly guilty about leaving the older girl, but quickly shook it off, '_It's not as if she's totally helpless,_' she told herself, slowing to a walk, '_and she's not stupid enough to run after me and get lost._'

Suddenly, Sabrina felt a drop of rain hit her face. Looking up, the little sky she could see was covered in black clouds. She heard a rumble of thunder. She began to walk faster, pulling her thick coat more tightly around her shoulders, though the chilly air hadn't touched her skin.

­­­­­­­­­­

"Sabrina! Sabrina! Come back here now! _Sabrina!_" Charlotte screamed until her throat was hoarse, but all she heard in reply were mocking echoes. Sabrina was running through the forest in the middle of a thunderstorm looking for two people who wanted to kill her, and Charlotte hadn't even given her a weapon. The cold rain hit her face as she slowly trudged back to the Horse. She leant her head against its hard shoulder, feeling her eyes burn with unshed tears.

'_What kind of a friend are you, letting her run into danger like that_?' she scolded herself, refusing to let those tears fall, '_You didn't even think about giving her a weapon until too late! And now you just stand here feeling sorry for yourself. So, what are you going to do now? You can't just leave her. Think of something! You're supposed to be the smart one, the brave one, but you just let her run off! You could at least _try _to find her_!' Wiping her burning eyes, she began to work out a plan.

With every crash of thunder, Sabrina's steps grew faster, until she was practically flying through the forest. Thunder had never scared her before, but now every flash of lightning seemed to split the sky, every rumble of thunder seemed to shake the ground. The rain became so heavy that she could barely see the trees looming out of it. She stumbled on a tree root, twisting her ankle. Her feet found no holds in the slippery mud. She crumpled into a heap on the ground.

Suddenly, she found herself looking up into a pair of familiar green eyes. Eyes that used to be full of nothing but mischief, and sometimes something she couldn't name. There was none of that there now, only a raw, terrifying hatred. He grabbed her upper arm in a painfully tight grip, hauling her to her feet.

"Well, look what we have here," he smiled icily, "The lost lamb has returned. What shall we do with her now?"

"Kill her." The voice that answered him was so full of loathing that Sabrina felt as though she had been slapped round the face. She bit her lip, trying to hold back a sob, but a single tear trickled down her cheek.

Puck leant forward and caught it on his finger, "Hey, look, she's crying!"

"Good. She should be crying, just as I cried when _she _abandoned me." The speaker stepped into view. Knowing what to expect didn't make the bitter discovery sting any less. Her face was practically unrecognisable, so twisted with hatred and fury that it could have belonged to Red Riding Hood before they discovered the kazoo, "How could you have done that to me, Sabrina, you traitor! You said you loved me, but you left me to die! Well, now it's your turn to see how that feels!" She pointed a wand at her older sister.

"Wait, Daphne, we can't kill her yet! You know the Master wants her alive," Puck cautioned her,

"Fine, I'll just tell them we've found her," the little girl sighed, and pulled a shard of mirror out of her pocket. She muttered into it for a few moments, before tucking it back into her pocket, "Ms. North should be here in any minute."

"Good. Now, what should we do to occupy our prisoner in the mean time?" he smiled maliciously, before grabbing her wrist and twisting it up behind her back. A gasp of pain escaped her lips. She squirmed and wriggled, trying to escape his grip, but he wrapped his other arm around her waist, pinning her free arm to her side.

"The way you're holding her, we won't have a prisoner," Daphne spat. He quickly rearranged his hold on her so that both her arms were trapped against her sides, and both his arms were gripping her tightly. Sabrina raised her foot to stamp on his, but he kicked her hard in the back of the calf. She stood still then, trying to think of a plan.

"If I'm a prisoner, can I at least ask a question?" she said, trying to hide the fear and pain she was feeling,

"Ask away. It isn't as if you'll have a tongue to ask with for much longer," he replied, mockingly.

"Do you hate me?" she asked,

"_Do you hate me?_" he mimicked her, "Do you really think I'd be doing _this_…" He jabbed her viciously in the ribs, "… if you didn't repulse me? I feel sick just looking at you."

"How much do you hate me?" she asked again, telling herself that every word meant it's opposite. This didn't stop a few more tears escaping her eyes,

"Oh, am I making you cry? Let's make it a bit clearer, just for the sake of making you break down completely. _I hate you._ I'd trade the universe just to watch someone torture you. Hell, I'd give more than that to be the one torturing you. Does the little girl understand now?" He leered at her sadistically,

Sabrina sniffed, "Good," In his surprise, Puck loosened his grip on her waist just long enough for her to twist in his arms and face him, "because I feel the exact same way."

She only meant to brush her cheek against his, allowing her tears to mingle with the rain water on his cheeks, but somehow, her lips met with his. For a moment, both of them froze. Sabrina's head was full of conflicting emotions. A part of her still felt disgust at the idea of being within a metre of the filthy boy, but it was overruled by the soft warm, cotton-wool-like feeling that filled her mind. This didn't stop her from pulling away the instant she remembered exactly what she was doing.

She knew her face was bright red, but she felt slightly better when she saw the dazed expressions on the faces of Puck and her sister.

"Wha'… What just happened?" Puck said, shaking his head as if to clear it, "Ew, Grimm, can't you keep your hands off me for one second? You're giving me cooties!"

"Actually, it's _you_ who's holding onto _me_!" she pointed out,

"No, I'm not…" He looked down at his arms, which were still encircling her waist, "Gross! What did I do that for?"

"That," said a new, all-too-familiar voice, "is a very good question, traitor." Floating down through the trees was a silvery bubble. Sabrina knew only one person who travelled like that. It was Glinda, the supposedly 'Good' Witch of the North, "Treachery is punishable by death, or did the Grimm girl's pretty face make you forget that, boy?"

"Treachery? What's going on?" Daphne asked, sleepily,

"You both know full well what's going on, brats," the woman said, viciously. She pulled a wand out from her belt, pointing it at them, "Now, who will die first? Hmmm, I think I'll kill your little girlfriend first. I'd like to see your face as you watch her die, knowing you are next."

Sabrina's eyes widened, as she saw the twisted look of hatred on the woman's face. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, and she knew no more…

"Sabrina!" two voices screamed, as the girl crumpled to the ground. Puck was frozen with fear for the first time in his life. Not fear for himself, but fear for the slender young girl who had just fallen at his feet. For the first time, Sabrina Grimm seemed fragile, breakable.

As Puck stood frozen, several things happened all at once. The bubble holding the witch was burst by a ray of orange light. She fell to the ground and was still.

At the same time, there was a louder thud behind him accompanied by a loud wailing, and a brown-and-blue blur sprinted past him, closely followed by Daphne. The first runner paused at Sabrina's side, falling to their knees. It was an unfamiliar girl, with long, dark brown hair escaping from an untidy bun and hiding her face. On her chest, there was a sling holding a young, copper-haired child who was wailing loudly. She placed two fingers below the blonde girl's jaw, feeling for a pulse.

"Her heart's still beating, there's still hope for her," she said, soothingly, "Your big sister's going to be OK, Adam, honey." The child stopped crying, calmed by her voice. The stranger got to her feet, and Puck finally saw her face. She had dark blue eyes, and her small, freckled nose and dark brown hair seemed strangely familiar to him.

"Who are you and what the hell are you doing here?" he asked, the words coming out harsher than he meant them to.

"There's no need to be rude!" the girl retorted,

"You just randomly appear out of thin air and expect us to act normal? What planet do you come from?" he yelled,

"Oh yeah, and offensive and insulting behaviour _isn't _normal for you? Can't you give a girl three seconds to check if her best friend's _alive_ before forcing her to explain herself?" she shouted back,

"You? Grimm's best friend? Yeah, right, I've never seen you before and I bet you've never even _been_ to New York!" he said scornfully,

"I just knocked out someone who was trying to kill you, her, and Daphne. In your position, I really wouldn't doubt me." She raised one eyebrow, waiting for his reply,

"And how do I know this isn't just a ruse? You might be faking this just to get into the fort. For all we know, you could be about to kill us!" He glared at her,

"God, you and Sabrina really make a pair when it comes to trust. I just saved your sorry life, and all you can do is scream at me? Next time, I might not bother!" She rolled her eyes,

"What idiot would trust some random girl who popped out of nowhere and claimed to be their g– friend's best friend?" he sneered,

"You've left a massive hole in your reasoning, fairy-boy," the girl said, as idly as if she hadn't been screaming at him for the past five minutes,

"Oh yeah? What?" Puck replied, furious that he couldn't think of a better response,

"If I wanted you dead, I have enough magic at my disposal to kill you right now… But I don't." She smiled grimly,

"I believe her," Daphne said, speaking up for the first time, "If she was going to kill us, she would have already. Now can we get Sabrina to a safe place before she really dies?"

"Fine by me, unless _he…_" she shot a murderous look at Puck, "…wants to waste more time arguing with me."

"Fine! I give up, but if she kills us all then it's not my fault!" he complained,

"Right, Daphne, follow me. Puck, you carry Sabrina," the girl said, walking back in the direction she'd come from,

"Why do I have to carry Grimm?" he argued, rebelliously,

"Because, unlike you, I need my hands free to steer my transport, so I can't hold on to her," she sighed, "Just do as you're told for once in your life, kid."

Puck was dumbstruck. Kid? Everafter of not, this girl was probably way younger than him, but she acted like he was younger than Daphne. With a grunt, he scooped Sabrina up in his arms, and began the flight through the heavy rain to the fort.

Veronica Grimm was sat on the parapet of the fort's roof, as she had been ever since her daughters disappeared. She hadn't slept, hadn't eaten, had barely drunk anything. Her bright green eyes were the only part of her moving, scanning the horizon.

Henry watched his wife as she sat in the pouring rain. For the first time in their married life, he was afraid for her, "Veronica." He placed a hand on her shoulder. She didn't react, just remained in her frozen position, "Come on, Veronica, you have to come inside now. It's pouring out here."

"I can't." Her voice was rusty from disuse, "What if they come back, and I'm not here waiting for them?"

"Sweetheart," he choked, his eyes filling with tears, "They aren't coming back. Mirror can't show us them, and he can show anyone… living."

"No!" she shrieked, her eyes wild, "They're not dead! They can't be dead! I would know if they were dead!"

"Sometimes, we just have to face the facts," he said, feeling older and more tired than ever before, "They aren't coming back."

"It's you who won't face facts, Henry Grimm." Her voice was colder than ice, "Out daughters are brave, wonderful girls, and if anyone can beat The Scarlet Hand, it's them. They aren't babies anymore, and you just can't recognise it."

Henry sighed, and turned to leave when he heard a clattering sound. Veronica had leapt to her feet, knocking her seat to the ground.

"Look!" she cried, tears of joy streaming down her face, "It's them! They're coming home!"

He squinted at the spot in the rain-filled sky. There were two figures coming closer and closer. He grabbed her hand, hoping, _praying_ for her intuition to be true. As they became easier to see, they realised that there were actually four people, children. The first were two dark-haired girls, one big, and one little, astride what appeared to be some kind of flying horse. The other was a winged boy, cradling a golden-haired girl in his arms.

They could hear a voice now, shouting "Mom! Dad!". It was barely audible, over the sound over the rain, but they could recognise it easily.

"Daphne!" they gasped. Then they threw their arms around each other, weeping for joy.

The horse was the first to land, and the little girl slid off it's back and into the loving embrace of her parents. The other girl slid off too, watching the joyous reunion with a sad little smile. It wasn't often now that Charlotte Perrault missed her own parents, but now she wished with all her heart that there was someone here to hold her the way Henry and Veronica were holding Daphne.

Then Puck joined them, and the happy family turned to take Sabrina into their group hug – and froze.

"Oh my god!" Veronica gasped, "What's happened to Sabrina?"


	16. Nightmare

**A/N: Lots of love to those readers who aren't plotting to kill me right now for taking so long with this, especially CGreene, AquamarineJazz, ttoes555, Lara D, Cookie-Dough-Always, mrf18 and RO-Z 28, who gave me lovely reviews.**

**Disclaimer: Why do I even need to write this? If I was Michael Buckley, this wouldn't be on this website.**

Chapter Sixteen

"What's happened to her? Is – is she still…" Veronica tailed off. She had never been more afraid in her life. Her daughter's skin was as white as marble, almost blue in fact, and twice as cold to touch. The only signs of life were the small movements of her chest as she breathed, and an all-too-faint heartbeat.

"Ask _him_," Charlotte said angrily,

All eyes turned to Puck, "All I know is that for some weird reason, we were all in the woods somewhere, Glinda turned up and cursed Sabrina, and then _she_…" He glared at Charlotte, "turned up out of nowhere, cursed _Glinda_, and started ordering everyone around without bothering to introduce herself!"

Everyone now turned to look at Charlotte, who shook back her hair angrily, "Well, excuse me for being worried about my best friend!"

"Stop lying, you sicko! I've never seen you here before, and I bet Grimm's parents never saw you in New York!" he yelled,

"Do you even know where she's been for the past two weeks? She could've been anywhere, met anyone, and you're having trouble believing me when I say I know her? Since when have you cared about Sabrina and who she spends her time with anyway? She told me a lot about you, fairy boy, and not much was complimentary!" she sneered

"Really? What did she say – I mean prove it!" he shouted,

The girl put her hands on her hips, "She told me you prank her practically every day. She told me that when you met her, you tried to dump her in a swimming pool. She even told me," She lowered her voice, "about what you two did the day after Jake arrived. Is that proof enough for you, sunshine?"

"How – how could you know that?" he stuttered, going bright red

"She told me, obviously," she repeated, rolling her eyes,

"OK, now tell me the truth. Who are you? How do you know all this?" Henry had joined in now, glaring at the dark-haired girl. Everyone was staring at her. Charlotte felt tears fill her eyes unbidden. Everything she'd planned so carefully when she was at home and safe, everything she'd hoped for, everything she'd been dreaming of since she had first heard of Sabrina Grimm, had been completely destroyed.

She buried her face in her hands and started to sob in earnest, "Why won't any of you believe me? I just… I wanted…" She broke off into noisy tears. The hostile stares never moved from her, until she felt a small hand on her arm.

"I believe her," Daphne said, glaring at her family,

"You're just a little…" Henry shut up at his wife's glare,

"She's not a baby anymore. She's one of the best Grimms Ferryport Landing's seen for years. Just listen to her," she commanded,

"Firstly, she cursed Glinda before she killed us. If she was out to get us for some weird reason, she obviously wouldn't have done that, even if she was working for Grimm-haters other than the Scarlet Hand," the girl began. Her mother looked impressed, her father doubtful, and Puck looked downright rebellious.

"No way!" he began, only to be silenced when Veronica slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shut up and let her talk!" she hissed,

"Also, the first thing she did after cursing Glinda was to see if Sabrina was OK. When we were discovering investigating the murder of Oberon in New York, Sabrina herself pointed out that someone's actions showed the truth more than their word. Nobody can act _that_ well. I say we trust her," she finished. Now both her parents looked dumbstruck, and Puck's eyes were bulging over Veronica's hand,

"Forget detective work, liebling, you would make a good lawyer," said a familiar female voice,

"Granny!" the little girl cried, throwing her arms around her grandmother's waist,

"Lieblings! Where have you been?" She suddenly caught sight of Sabrina, but rather than gasping, she only sighed wearily, "Alright, Puck, what have you done to her this time?"

"Mmph mmph!" Veronica removed her hand from Puck's mouth to allow him to talk, "I didn't do anything to her!" he spat, angrily,

"Sure you didn't, and the moon is really made of blue cheese," said another voice, as Uncle Jake appeared behind Granny on the steps, "Who else plays potentially lethal pranks on Sabrina on a regular basis? Was the whole disappearing thing a prank gone wrong as well?"

"Why don't you just ask her? She was there the whole time and we still have no idea who she is!" he scowled,

Jake looked at the crying girl, frowning, "Can I see your face a second, sweetpea?" She snorted loudly, rubbed her eyes, and looked up at him. He hadn't seen her face out of a magic mirror for a year, but he could recognise her as easily as his own nieces, "Charlotte! How on earth you convince Lady Rhiannon to let you come this far on your own?"

"You _know_ this nutcase?" Puck yelled,

"I wouldn't call her a nutcase if I were you. The Lady Rhiannon is her godmother, and she can get _pretty_ touchy about people upsetting her," he retorted,

"Touchy like writing a letter to my mother?" he mocked,

"No. Touchy like blowing up the whole of the U.S.," the man said,

"You're joking, right?" the boy asked,

"Deadly serious. Rhiannon's overprotective to say the least when it comes to Charlotte."

"She thinks I'm either made of glass, or so mentally disturbed I can't be trusted out of her sight," Charlotte sighed, rolling her eyes,

"The mentally disturbed theory isn't so unreasonable. After what you saw two years ago, it might be expected for you to at least show some signs of traumatisation," he replied reasonably,

"I'm not insane!" she protested, angrily

"I think maybe we should call a family meeting," said Granny firmly, shepherding the children down the stairs, and leaving the adults to follow.

"I can explain!" Charlotte began,

"You better be able to explain!" Puck interrupted, "Who do you think you are, anyway? You come in here…"

"Enough, Puck," said Granny Relda, firmly, "Let her talk."

"Turn the mirror to the wall first, please," she requested,

"Charlotte, I don't know if Sabrina's told you, but Mirror is a trusted friend of our family. Anything you can tell us, you can tell him," Relda informed her,

"I can't, I really can't," she repeated,

"Why not?" asked the older woman, frowning,

"I'll tell you when you turn him round," she pleaded, "This is private."

Veronica sighed, but got to her feet, "If it's what it takes to get you to talk."

When she'd turned it around and sat back down, Charlotte told her story. When she'd finished, Puck glared at her, "Why should any of us believe you?"

"You saw the first part yourself, and the rest of it is so unbelievable that even an idiot wouldn't use it as a cover story. If I was lying, it would be way more believable than that," she replied, putting her hands on her hips, "Now, before anyone else has a go at me, can one of you take Adam out of this sling? He's heavy."

Henry and Veronica disentangled the straps from her back and lifted their son out of the sling. He began to cry, and while his mother tried to comfort him, his father lifted his eldest sister gently from the table and carried her out. Daphne turned to her grandmother, "Granny, is there a library here?" she asked, her usually happy face grave.

"Yes, liebling, it's just down the corridor." She sat down, looking exhausted, "I'm getting too old for life in a war zone." She turned her face away from them, and Charlotte guessed she was crying. She grabbed Puck and Daphne, and dragged them out of the room.

"Let's do some research, Daphne," she said,

"Are you coming, Puck?" the younger girl asked him,

"You couldn't pay me to spend any longer with _her_," he spat, and stalked off.

The girls looked at one another, and shrugged. They walked down the corridor, opening different doors in search of the library. The third door they opened led into the room where Sabrina lay. Charlotte froze, but Daphne took her arm and dragged her away. After ten more doors, they finally reached the library. The older girl chose a few spell books, before leaving the library and re-entering Sabrina's room.

The storm had ended, and the pink sunlight streaming through the window gave the cruel illusion of colour in the girl's icy skin. Charlotte sat down in the chair by the bed, beginning to read.

_It was dark when a clattering sound woke her. She must have fallen asleep and dropped her book, so she knelt to pick it up. At that moment, she suddenly found herself staring into a pair of hauntingly familiar grey eyes. A larger pair of hands grasped hers, pulling her to her feet. For a moment she froze, a rabbit caught in the gaze of a snake._

_She shook herself, and glared at the boy standing in front of her, "What the hell do you think you're doing here, murderer?" she hissed, angrily,_

"_Good question," he replied, nonchalantly, "Maybe I have a new beloved," His predatory gaze swept over Sabrina's body, and he caressed her cheek, "Or maybe I've come to reclaim the one who escaped me." He turned his stare back to the older girl,_

"_Ever heard the saying 'Build a bridge, and get over it?'" she snapped at him,_

"_What if I don't want to 'Get over it'? What if, Miss Perrault, I think you need reminding of who your heart truly belongs to." He hooked her chin up with one finger, forcing her to meet his eyes._

"_Stay away from us, Reynard," she said, softly,_

"_Not you, Charlotte, never you," he murmured. He gently pressed his lips against her lower jaw._

_Charlotte gasped. It felt as though he'd held a lighted match to her skin instead of kissing it. She screamed aloud..._

The agony woke her from her sleep, properly this time. Her hand flew to the spot on her jaw, but the pain had faded quickly. Needing to reassure herself that it had been nothing but a nightmare, she got to her feet and peered into the mirror on the wall. Her image filled her with fear. The place where her enemy had kissed her was marked with the shape of a white star...


	17. Words We Don't Say

**A/N: I'm still surprised that people enjoy this story! This part is difficult to write, because there's not much Sabrina to have fun with, Oh, well, time to thank my lovely reviewers: Lara D, RO-Z 28, mrf18, ellimac57, TSG4ever (x2),DemonWitchCat, ttoes555, Cookie-Dough-Always and grimmfan**

**Disclaimer: If I was Michael Buckley, this would be in your local bookstore.**

Chapter Seventeen

Charlotte collapsed back into her chair. What was happening to her? She thought she'd erased his image from her memory long ago, but his image had reprinted itself on the backs of her eyelids. It seemed that no matter how far she fled from the places that reminded her of him, he would always follow her. It felt as though his presence clung to her like her mother's blood had on that terrible day. The blood _he _had spilt. The blood he longed to spill again. The blood that still flowed in her own veins.

She sniffed, feeling the urge to cry. She bit her lip. '_Crying won't help Sabrina,_' she told herself, firmly. Unable to get back to sleep, she picked up another book. Suddenly, there was a choking noise from Sabrina. Charlotte leapt to her feet and tried to prop the other girl up as best she could. What looked like water gushed out of her mouth. There was enough to soak her sheets, mattress and Charlotte's clothes completely, and some of it was pooling on the floor.

Charlotte's immediate reaction was to back away and find one of Sabrina's parents or her grandmother to deal with it. However, steeling herself, she leant forward and brushed the damp golden curls away from the younger girl's face. Sabrina looked up at her, her face pale and frightened. There was some kind of translucent, milky film covering her green eyes.

"Mom?" she whimpered. The older girl was momentarily stunned. '_Oh, do calm down!_ ' A voice in her head chastened her, '_The room is dark, and she probably can barely see. Comfort her, as her mother would.'_

She gently stroked the girl's icy cheek. She felt a slight twinge of loss for an instant, a longing for a sister who had died before she'd had a chance to be born, a sister she'd never know now, "I'm here, honey," she murmured, as though she spoke to her own sister, "I'm here."

"It's so cold, Mom," she sniffed, snuggling to the older girl's warmth. Charlotte sat down carefully on the bed beside her, "Feels like I'm drowning."

"It's OK, sweetheart, you're safe." She stroked her hair gently. She got to her feet to find her some clean sheets, but Sabrina grabbed her hand.

"Stay with me," she pleaded, clinging on, feebly, "I don't want you to go."

"Your sheets are soaking, honey. I need to get you some dry ones," she tried to explain, but Sabrina only clung on harder,

"Dad can get them!" she argued, desperately,

"Alright, how about I go and find someone to get you sheets, and then I'll come straight back, OK, 'Brina?" the older girl said. Mimicking Veronica's voice was starting to hurt her throat.

"Promise you'll come back?" Sabrina's voice was uncertain, and her grip on the older girl's hand loosened,

"Of course I will," she replied, gently tugging her hand out of the younger girl's grip.

"OK, Mom," she sighed, falling back limply on the pillow,

Charlotte left the room quickly, and knocked on the first door she found. After a few moments, it was opened by a very disgruntled-looking Puck.

"What do _you_ want?" he scowled at her,

"I need you to get me some clean sheets for Sabrina. She's throwing up all over them," Charlotte demanded.

Puck yawned, loudly, "Women's work. I'm going back to bed."

Frustrated and tired, Charlotte lost her temper, "You are no way going back to bed, fairy boy. You are going to find Sabrina some clean sheets and bring them to the room across the corridor from yours, and if you like having all your teeth, you'll do it _fast_. Understand?"

For once in his life, Puck did as he was told without a fight. There was something about that girl that made her seem as though she could snap at any moment. He didn't want to be around when that happened

Charlotte made her way back to Sabrina's room. Sabrina was still awake, but shivering uncontrollably, and looking weaker than before. Charlotte noticed that it was darker in the room than before.

"Mom?" Her voice was weak and trembling, "Where's the moon gone?"

Glancing out of the window, Charlotte saw that the bright moon was beginning to sink below the horizon. Sabrina fell back heavily against her pillows, as though its fading light somehow weakened her. Charlotte took her icy hand and squeezed in the hope of getting a returning squeeze, but Sabrina seemed too weak even to offer her friend that comfort. She only lay there, limp as a doll and white as a wraith. The only sign that she was still conscious was the blinking of her eyes.

Finally, the door creaked open and Puck entered, carrying a bundle of sheets.

"How long does it take to find a linen cupboard in this place?" Charlotte complained,

"Who's doing who the favour here?" Puck replied, irritably,

"This isn't a favour, Puck, this is you acting like a human being for once in your spoilt little life," she snapped at him, snatching the sheets out of his arms,

"What's your problem?" he complained,

At this point, Charlotte flipped, "What's _my_ problem? Maybe I don't like being accused of being in The Scarlet Hand before I can thread three words together? Maybe I don't like people who have amazing powers and waste them in immaturity contests with _Peter Pan_ of all people? Or maybe, just maybe, I don't like boys who mess my friends around!" She suddenly dropped the sheets and gave him a ringing slap around the face, before storming out of the room.

"Psycho!" Puck yelled after her, but he only heard her footsteps fading. His cheek stung where she'd slapped him. He was tempted to run after her and find a way to get his own back, but he was distracted by a noise from the bed,

"Puck?" Sabrina whimpered, "Where's my mom gone?"

"Your mom? She wasn't here!" he replied, surprised,

"She was, but then you argued and she ran away," she murmured, turning her head restlessly, as though trying to see where she had gone,

"What – That wasn't your mom, Grimm, it was your friend Charlotte, remember?" he told her, confused,

"Who's Charlotte? Where am I?" Her voice was becoming more and more frantic,

Hesitantly, Puck took a couple of steps closer to her, laying a hand on her damp hair and stroking it gently. That seemed to soothe her, slightly.

"You're safe, Sabrina," he whispered, gently. She looked up at him with wide green eyes,

"You're being nice? Are you feeling OK?" she smiled, but rather than lighting it up, as he'd tried not to notice it had done before, it only made her face look ghostly. Suddenly, her eyelids fell shut as though someone had flicked a switch. He tried to shake her awake, but she lay there completely limp. He could feel now how wet her sheets were. Carefully, he lifted her up and placed her on the floor so he could change them for the clean ones he had brought earlier. After ten minutes of frustration, he was about to give up when he heard a giggle coming from the doorway. He looked up to find a small girl in red pyjamas standing there.

"Do you want some help?" she smiled, "I could hear you swearing at the bed-sheets from my room on the floor below this one."

"OK," he sighed, handing the sheets to her. Red looked at the bed incredulously,

"Don't you know you're supposed to take the wet sheets off first?" she asked,

"Since when have kings needed to know how to make their own beds, Red?" he replied, sarcastically,

"Since they started sleeping in them," she said, calmly. She had pulled all the wet sheets off now, and was starting to remake it with the clean sheets, "I wish people wouldn't call me that."

"What?"

"Red. It's not my name, and I might never remember my first one. Red was a psychotic murderer who thought that a monster was her pet kitten. I don't want to remember being Red. I don't even want to share her name," she sighed,

"What do you want me to do about it?" Puck complained. Seriously, did he have a notice on his forehead saying 'Agony Aunt'?

"Well, since you're offering..." She narrowed her eyes, "Could you help me choose a new one?"

"Hmm," He was silent for a few seconds, "What about... Scarlett?"

"Scarlett Grimm? It sounds like a cheap Goth lipstick."

"Ruby?" was his next suggestion.

"That sounds even worse."

"OK, OK," He thought for a little longer, before saying, "Garnet. That's my final offer."

"Garnet..." She rolled the name around her mouth, as though she could taste it, "I like it! Thanks, Puck!"

With that, she skipped out of the room, unusually cheerful. Carefully, Puck lifted Sabrina gently back up onto the bed. She looked so fragile. The thought entered his head unbidden, closely followed by a word he had never wanted to apply to Sabrina Grimm. Beautiful. Her damp hair was a golden halo around her pale face, making her look, well, angelic. That was one word he'd never even admit to knowing, much less using to describe a girl who he supposedly hated.

He went to sit down beside her, but there was a large pile of books in his way. Wincing, he tucked his hands inside his sleeves for protection and began moving them one at a time. It wasn't the most efficient means of transporting them. He was carrying a heavy, ancient-looking one when his hands finally became too painful to hold on any longer. It clattered noisily to the floor and fell open. Sighing, he bent to pick it up, but froze when he saw the title of the page it had landed on.

_The Wand of Prospero_

_The wand created by the magician Prospero has many powers, but its most intriguing ability is known by few. It is the only magical object in existence which can be used to cast the 'Sea Change Curse'. This curse is a terrible one. The victim will feel most of their body transform while still being alive. Their bones will slowly become coral, their eyes pearls. They will vomit up copious amounts of seawater, as though they have just been saved from drowning. Their skin will be cold as the sea. The moon, as it gives the sea breath in the form of the tides, shall be the only thing to give them life. During the day they shall sleep as though dead. When the moon hides her face, as she does once a month, the victim will wither and die before the night ends._

He gasped. Every word on the page seemed to describe Sabrina's strange illness – and told him that it would inevitably end with her death. At that moment, he felt as though every bone in his body had turned to numb, fragile ice. He scanned the page in vain, but there was a large tear which obliterated the rest of the words. He wanted to throw it across the room, rip every single useless page from its spine.

Before he could do any of these things, he noticed a few legible lines at the bottom of the page.

_Note: The first true victim of this curse was a young maiden named Sabrina who lived near the River Severn in England. The queen in that country loathed Sabrina and her mother. The mother was put to death by drowning, but the girl herself was placed under the Sea Change Curse. A man who loved her found a cure: a mysterious person only described as a 'Firesinger'. However, he was too late to save her. This is the closest anyone has ever come to surviving this curse._

An uncontrollable happiness burst through his body, as suddenly as the sorrow had just moments before. It didn't matter how small the chances were of finding one of those 'Firesingers'. It didn't matter that he only had a month in which to do it. As long as there was a cure, he would climb any mountain, swim the widest sea, he'd even swear not to take revenge on Charlotte if that's what it would take. Even if there was less than a glimmer of hope, Puck, son of Oberon, swore to himself that he would save her.


	18. Birdsong

**A/N: Thanks again to my lovely (I really ought to get a new adjective to describe them) reviewers: Lara D, selkie, ttoes555, rose angel 428, Aquamarine Jazz, grimmfan, MalibuDanceChic, sabrinagrimm and DemonWitchCat. **

**To mysteryguy, who I wish had an account: I started this before any information was released on the eighth book, and I will probably continue it after The Inside comes out. By the way, I'm not Canadian. Apart from that, I'm glad you like my stories, so please keep reading after you've moved.**

**Bonus points to anyone who can tell me where I got the idea for the 'Sea Change Curse' last chapter!**

**P.S. I've been nominated for elligoat's competition, 'The Bestest Story of 2009. Very excited!**

**Disclaimer: How many times do I have to write this? I AM NOT MICHAEL BUCKLEY!!**

Chapter 18

There were many notices on the walls of the communal dining room at Fort Charming. There was news of new members of The Scarlet Hand, and of their victims. Posters pleading for information on missing family or friends were also stuck up there. In fact, there were so many posters papering the walls that it was amazing that someone had noticed Puck's one which demanded any information on Firesingers. But someone had noticed, and that someone approached him soon after breakfast.

"Excuse me," a polite voice said from behind his chair, "Are you Puck? The one who put the poster up about Firesingers?"

"Do you know anything about them?" he asked, turning to look at the speaker. It was a woman around the same age as Sabrina's mother. She had short, blonde hair and large brown eyes.

"Not personally, but I think I know who might," she replied, "She and her people know everything there is to know about singing."

"Spit it out, already," Puck said, impatiently,

The woman raised her eyebrows, "I am talking about the merpeople. I believe that the Grimms have already had a run-in with their princess. She is still angry with them, or at least she would be if she had the energy. She isn't too fond of males either. Maybe you should have an ambassador talk to her first."

"An ambassador?"

"Someone with connections to the merpeople. Female, preferably young to stir up some sympathy, though the princess has little sympathy to give these days. I don't have any suggestions, but there's bound to be somebody who does. Oh, my brothers are calling, I've got to run. If you need me, just come up to the Hospital Hall and ask for Odette." With that, she turned tail and vanished, leaving Puck with an uncontainable sense of excitement.

After breakfast, he sought out Granny Relda. She had been all over the world, and if anyone knew about a girl with mermaid connections, she would. He found her in a room that she was trying to turn into a nursery for the baby Grimm.

"Puck, liebling," she said when she saw him, "Would you mind holding this bucket? Be careful, it's full of paint."

Puck took it from her and held it carefully. Spilling it would get him on her bad side, and he really didn't need that.

"Do you know anything about merpeople?" he asked,

"A little. Why are you interested?" She didn't look up from the crib she was painting a vivid scarlet.

"This girl called Odette told me they might know how to help Sabrina," he replied,

"Odette? She's a dear, and Red adores her," the woman said, absentmindedly,

"Garnet," Puck corrected her,

"What?" That had made her look up,

"Garnet. Red changed her name at about five this morning, and woke me up to tell me about it." He didn't add that he had been awake anyway, and had helped her choose a name. What would that do for his already-dubious position as Trickster King?

"I must remember that. Now, you wanted to learn more about the merpeople?"

"Odette said something about the princess being a bad-tempered fat fish," he said,

"I can't imagine Odette saying something so rude, but that _is_ quite an accurate description of her. She despises most humans, and quite a few of her own kind. As for her helping Sabrina, she's still upset about the girls and Jacob stealing her piece of the Vorpal Blade to get you out of Ferryport Landing," Relda smiled,

"Can you think of anyone she wouldn't mind helping?" he pleaded,

"Not really. She orders at least one execution a day of her people. Although..." She frowned, "I remember something about a Cornish cousin. Her name began with M, I think. Something like Morveren..."

"Morwenna? Of course I know her! She's my godmother. What's it to you, anyway, fairy boy?"

Charlotte Perrault probably deserved the title of the most annoying human Puck had ever met. It _would_ be her of all people who could help him.

"The only person who might be able to help Sabrina is a fat, spoilt, psychotic mermaid princess. She'd probably kill me on sight..."

Charlotte interrupted him, "So you want me to go in there and probably get killed in your place? No chance."

He rolled his eyes at her. Really, he wanted to hit her, but she might be the only way to save Sabrina, "She won't kill you. You're her cousin's beloved goddaughter. If anyone can convince her to help us out, it's probably you. You'd probably be best friends. You're both mentally unstable and bratty, not to mention overweight."

Charlotte didn't slap him, though her face turned pale with anger and she clenched her fists. "Watch it, _kid_. I'm going to play nicely with you for Sabrina's sake, but one more stupid comment and I swear I'll rip your stupid wings off, OK?"

She turned away, and sat down at a small table. She pulled a notebook and a pen out of her pocket, and began to write something. Puck peered over her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" he asked,

"What does it look like I'm doing, idiot? I'm forging a letter from Morwenna to her cousin, so we might get a chance to see her. Now buzz off, before I'm tempted to inflict some pain on you." She turned her back on him, veiling her face with her dark hair. Puck left the room without another insult. She was grateful for that. She wanted to cry in peace.

All her life, Charlotte Perrault had been a child among adults. A mature, precocious child, perhaps, one who many adults thought clever, but a child none the less. Now she was suddenly expected to grow up, to know everything, to have some of Rhiannon's intelligence and powers – and she was failing. She hadn't realised how cosseted she'd been. Now she was living Sabrina's life, and any criticisms she may have had of her friend had turned to dust in her throat.

She was still wallowing in self pity when she heard the door creak open. She quickly rubbed her face on her sleeve.

"Charlotte?" a voice said behind her. It was Jake.

"Yes?" she answered, trying not to sound hoarse,

"Hey, have you been crying, sweetpea?" he said, sitting down beside her,

"Just homesick." She sniffed and wiped her eyes.

"It's OK to be homesick, Charlotte. You're a long way from home now," he comforted her,

"I'm fine now. Was there anything you wanted?"

"Did you know anything about Briar Rose? She was my fiancée…"

"She died, I know. I'm sorry." Charlotte averted her eyes, feeling like an intruder.

"You shouldn't be sorry, Charlotte." There was something in his voice that startled her, "You are going to help me bring her back."

"What?" she choked, "That's impossible!"

"Not if you have one of the Birds of Rhiannon."

Charlotte gasped as though he had poured ice down her top, "They aren't real. She _told _me they aren't real. If they were real, she would have brought my parents back."

"What was in the birdcage she gave you, then?" he argued,

"That was the Speaking Bird. Rhiannon wouldn't lie to me about something like that," she said, stubbornly

"Charlotte, do you even know anything about the Birds of Rhiannon?" he argued,

"Of course I do. Rhiannon created them from the first things she found after the death of her first husband, Pwyll, and something that she had that reminded her of him. The first was emerald green, made of water from her fountain, and the tears she wept for him. The second was white as snow, shaped from the clouds of the sky and a beautiful comb made of pearl, the first thing he gave her after they were married. The third, and most powerful, was pure gold, and she created it from sunlight and the wedding ring he gave her. The Birds sang so sweetly that they could wake the dead, and send the living into a deep sleep, free of any physical or emotional pain. It was my favourite fairytale when I was little, but that's exactly what it is – _a fairytale_. Things can be in stories without existing, you know." Jake raised his eyebrows at her uncharacteristically mocking tone. She sighed, resting her head in her hands, "I'm sorry, I just feel so tired all the time, and that makes me grumpy."

"It's OK," he replied, sympathetically, "I know what it's like not being able to sleep at night." In fact, he felt as though he hadn't slept at all since Briar Rose died.

"I just got upset because it sounded like you were saying Rhiannon had lied to me. I can't..." She found she was blinking back tears, "I need to have someone who'll never leave me, won't deceive me, and ask for nothing in return. Someone who'll love me completely and unconditionally. Is that too much to ask?"

"Sometimes, it feels like it." They sat in silence for a few minutes, the man with the broken heart, and the girl whose heart was only just beginning to heal over.

Suddenly she smiled and leapt to her feet, "I know exactly who can answer our question!"

"Who would that be?" He smiled in spite of himself at her sudden enthusiasm.

"Meera!"

"Mirror? Are you insane? You told us yourself that he was the Master. The only reason he hasn't been smashed yet is that we can't lose all the magical resources we keep with him."

"That's not what I said. I said _Meera_. I don't think she's going to be very pleased to see me, though."

"Too damn right, I'm not pleased to see you, Charlotte Perrault!" Meera's voice was shrill and irritated, "I place a Shrinking Spell on myself, come on a long journey when you know I get travel sick, I even put up with being sat on, and does my ungrateful best friend remember me? _Noooooo_, she has way more _important_ things to do, like mope around and act like the Emo Queen! And then, when you finally remember me, it's only because you _want_ something!"

"I'm really sorry!" Charlotte could only repeat, "I should have remembered, I swear it won't ever happen again."

"It better not, or I swear I'll run off and join The Scarlet Hand." She still sounded angry, but she was beginning to calm down.

"Please, Meera, this is important," she pleaded,

"Fine, but this had better be the last time you neglect me like that," she agreed, shaking back her thick, dark hair, "What's the question?"

"We need to know about the Birds of Rhiannon," Jake cut in eagerly,

"That? Ask me something difficult, for a change! Rhiannon gave me lessons on them herself," she added, with not a little pride in her tone.

"WHAT?" Charlotte shrieked at the top of her lungs, "You know she was lying to me all this time and didn't tell me? What kind of friend are you?"

"Rhiannon made me swear on my mother's lamp that I wouldn't tell you," Meera replied,

"Am I really so unstable that I need to be treated like some kind of china doll who might crack up at any moment?" Charlotte's voice was chilly, unlike her usually warm tones,

"Yes," was the blunt, unexpected answer she received, "Don't you remember what you were like after your parents died? You barely ate or slept, you'd disappear for hours at a time, even in the middle of the night, you were wasting away to nothing! It was like something out of a nightmare, like watching you drown without being able to help you. Then Chandra and Yamuna arrived, and you seemed to get better. Rhiannon – it almost killed her to see you like that in the first place, Everafter or not. She couldn't have borne seeing you fade away again. She told you they weren't real so that you wouldn't hate her..."

"For what?" Charlotte's voice was calmer now, but her hands still shook from badly concealed anger,

"For not being powerful enough." Meera's chocolate eyes were downcast, "Rhiannon may be practically a goddess in terms of power, but even _her_ creations do have their limits. They can only bring back Everafters, and even then only Everafters with a lover left bereft after their death. They can't have died of natural causes, and even when they come back, there is still a cost: their immortality, and any powers they might have."

"And that's all?" Jake interrupted, eagerly, "I can bring Briar Back?

"All? You shouldn't treat such a great cost so lightly. Your Briar Rose may not be a particularly powerful Everafter, but she may not take too kindly to losing the abilities she has enjoyed for over 100 years."

"Even if it means she can leave the barrier?" Charlotte said, quietly,

"What?" The others turned to look at her,

"Just thinking aloud," she replied

"OK. Now where's the Bird you brought with you?" asked Jake,

"Ah, we may have a problem..." Charlotte admitted, biting her lip,

"Nuh uh, Rhiannon knows how daft you are. She spelled everything in here that you removed to revert to here after 24 hours. We can go and get it now." On this, Meera turned away from them to lead them towards one of the many doors in her hall's marble walls.

She opened it and unhooked the birdcage from the jewelled saddle of the Ebony Horse. She pulled the white cloth off to reveal the most beautiful bird Charlotte had ever seen.

While the delicate gold and emerald cage which contained it was lovely indeed, no dull metal could compare to the living gold of this creature's feathers. They shimmered as it shook out its wings and trilled a few test notes, blinking its green eyes at the sudden light. As though hypnotised, Jake reached out and twined his fingers tightly around the bars. The bird bent its long neck and gently pecked at his fingers, before throwing back its head and starting to sing.

Though the tune was gentle and lilting, it was more like a lullaby than the mourning song they had expected. Charlotte suddenly felt incredibly tired, and wanted to curl up on the cold stone floor and let the song lull her to sleep. Instead, she pressed her back to the wall, hoping that the cool at the back of her neck would keep her awake long enough to see what happened. It was only when the temptation to sleep felt almost irresistible when something happened to make her forget it all together.

A single, white rose petal appeared, circling in the air. Soon it was followed by another, then another, until there was a tall column of rose petals whirling in a complex dance in the centre of the room. The warm breeze they created stirred the girls' hair, but Jake seemed to barely notice it. After some time, the swirling petals slowed in their dance as the song became almost a whisper. Finally, they fell to the ground as the song ended, leaving a blinking, bewildered woman standing where the heart of the column had been. Jake covered the ground between them in two long strides and swept her off her feet in a passionate kiss. The girls glanced at eachother and decided to leave them to it.

When Charlotte stepped out of the mirror into the darkness of Sabrina's room, she dug a hand into her pocket, pulling out a crumpled scrap of paper and a pencil stub. Unfolding it, she looked again at the words written on it, and rubbed out one line. The paper now read:

_To survive the darkness, you must remember three things,  
__  
Second, fear of the flames will make you follow in your namesake's steps,  
Third, the words of foxes are the sweetest poison, but love can conquer death._

She sighed, before sitting down heavily in the chair, and soon she succumbed to deep sleep.

When she woke, there was something strange on the bedside table. It was a starfish, and pinned to it was a note which read simply: '_Payment_'.


End file.
